Synopsis
This is a book researched and written by the students in the Advanced Historical Research course at Pace Academy.
Atlanta’s history is defined by its status as a transportation hub. Over generations, Atlanta has emerged as a global crossroads of air traffic, a city of highways and railroads, a place endlessly moving. From its humble origins as Terminus, the last stop on the rail line, transportation has been at the core of Atlanta’s economic and social development.
However, Atlanta’s status comes with a troubled history of cultural and racial divides. Interstates, streetcars, rail lines, and buses were meant to connect the city, yet for many parts of the city, there was just as much exclusion as connection. Atlanta’s transportation infrastructure was meant to move people forward, but which people? And at whose expense?
Planes, Trains, and Automobiles explores moments that shaped Atlanta’s identity through the lens of transportation, from the earliest railroads to the construction of MARTA to the companies like Porsche and Lockheed that now call Atlanta home.