"This book explores the history of American architecture from prehistoric times to the present, explaining why characteristic architectural forms arose at particular times and in particular places."--BOOK JACKET.

"Mark Gelernter shows how buildings express powerful cultural forces. They embody our deeply felt attitudes about our relationship with nature, our social relations with others, the importance of the individual, the value of science and technology, and our political role in the world. The author also explains how designers sometimes expressed these ideas with available building technologies, while other times they invented new technologies in order to realize new ideas."--BOOK JACKET.

"A history of American architecture presents this fascinating story of American architecture in ten chronological chapters. Each chapter begins with a broad survey of the dominant cultural forces and technology, and then discusses how the designers of the day responded with particular architectural forms. This survey includes the contemporaneous European cultural and architectural ideas, since Europe significantly influenced much of America's history."--BOOK JACKET.