>In a message dated 99-01-05 09:30:33 EST, you write:
>
><< [log in to unmask] (Emily Leonard) >>
>Emily,
>Have you looked at the book "GOTHAM" a History of New York City to 1898? The
>cover of the book states: A monumental History of New York City, from the
>earlisest Indian peoples to its consolidation as Greater New York in 1898. The
>authors are Edwin G. Burrows and Mike Wallace. I bought the book thru The-
>Book-of the-Month Club, but I think I also saw it at Barnes & Noble or else at
>Walden's Book store.
>Lanah De Witt
Lanah:

I have "Gotham" and the Encyclopedia of New York City and a floorto ceiling
bookcase filled with books about the City. What I don't have is an easy
acquaintance with source materials, the kind of 'in the pores' knowledge
most upstate historians seem to have. As a novelist, I'm a pretty good
historian, but not as good as I would like to be. As a novelist, the book
competes with the research for research's sake.

But thankyou so much for your suggestion, I do appreicate your interest.