by James W. Goode
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Product Description
An elegant, completely updated edition of the landmark study of Washington’s lost architecture The publication of Capital Losses a quarter century ago created a clarion call for preservation action by documenting the wanton destruction of many architecturally and culturally significant buildings in the nation’s capital. In the decades since, rising public awareness and the passage of the Historic District and Historic Landmark Protection Act in 1978 have slowed the pace of thoughtless destruction. But as this completely new and updated edition of Capital Losses demonstrates, vigilance remains the watchword, especially as pressures for urban growth continue to intensify in historic neighborhoods. At once a visual delight, a fascinating social history, and an eloquent appeal for ongoing awareness, Capital Losses reveals the Washington that was and how it became what it is today. This updated edition includes eighteen more treasures lost and ninety additional historic photographs. The 270 buildings featured here represent a legacy forever gone, a cultural heritage destroyed in the name of "progress." A thoughtful introduction by noted architectural historian Richard Longstreth brings the preservation story up to the present.
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Average Customer Review:
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
Brilliant in its writing and photography, 2008-04-21
I was given a copy of this book for my birthday several years ago and spent hours pouring over its prose and its historical narratives. I never grow tired of this book.
Credit for this work goes to its author who has accomplished the near to impossible - an engaging and personal history of Washington DC told through the destroyed architecture and the people behind the buildings and their creation. The illustrations are gorgeous, but its Goode's way with worlds that allows the reader to lose themselves in the history of the buildings profiled.
I would imagine that this type of book in the wrong hands would become an academic tome, dry and technical. Goode brings the people of the District to life for the reader, and compels the reader to look for more.
If the book fails, it is in the lack of a comprehensive map of the whole District of Columbia. If you are not familiar with the streets and layout of the city (itself genius) then the book can be confusing.
Ideally, I would suggest this as a gift to anyone interested in history, city planning, government or historical architecture.
0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
Pictoral History of Washington D.C.'s Lost Landmarks, 2008-03-28
Lovely book with pictures that will stir memories in the hearts of all native Washingtonians and those who wish they were!
3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
D.C. DESTRUCTION, 2006-10-13
As you pour over all the wonderful black and white images and run you eyes over the artistry and talent it took to create most of these long gone structures you can help, but pause and take a deep breath. This book has scholarly, exhaustively researched text that enlighens and educates the reader. I agree with one articulate reviewer that stated that the author did not make allowances for market forces and changing times, but having said that, I do believe that most of these buildings could have been saved and used for other purposes, I mean the retrofited old buildings in NYC and Boston, why not Washington. The destruction of so many buildings is unconscionable, and when you see the buildings that replaced them all you do is stare. I was not around in the sixties so i didnt witness the worst of this senceless destruction, but i know that here in Houston, even today, great old buildings are never totally safe, it's no wonder Europeans don't get us, as an American i don't get us either. Highly recommended..the book and perservation.
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
The Non-Tourist's Historical Washington, D.C., 2004-06-25
Unique and engaging, "Capital Losses" is a scrapbook chronicle of Washington, DC-- not as the "nation's capital," but as a collection of neighborhoods, people, and activities. The book memorializes dozens of buildings lost to the wrecker's ball. Each edifice is featured in a one- to two-page chapter that includes splendid vintage photographs. The accompanying write-ups always discuss design elements, thanks to the authors' encyclopedic knowledge in this area. The story of each structure is then expanded into a discussion of the designers, builders, and notable inhabitants. "Capital Losses" is a survey of history, intrigue, gossip as well as architectural styles. That's what makes this book so fun. The authors' sympathy for historic preservation is to a fault. Narratives hardly attempt to recognize the social, economic, and technological forces that so often make demolition inexorable. For example, the advent of central air conditioning initiated the doom of many hotel and office structures that could not be economically retrofitted. In addition, the post-war demise of downtown commercial areas also accelerated the decay and eventual destruction of many classic structures. To be fair, an analysis of causal forces was not the intention of this volume. It pays homage to Washington's folksier history in an elegant manner. This is a wonderful coffee table book.
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
An exceptional architectural tour and a unique resource, 2003-06-12
Now in an updated second edition, Capital Losses: A Cultural History Of Washington's Destroyed Buildings by Washington history expert James M. Goode is a carefully presented documentation and chronicle of the great architectural and cultural edifices of Washington, D.C., which have been lost to the endless grind of urban renewal in the years prior to 1978. That was the year in which crucial preservation legislation was passed. Packed from cover to cover with black-and-white photographs, enhancing a text which is extensive in detail, history, unique historical insights, Capital Losses is an exceptional architectural tour and a unique resource offering a kind of "window" into the architectural past of the nation's capital.
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