California's Practical Period: Cultural Context of the Emerging University, 1850's-1870's

Barth examines higher education in nineteenth-century California, drawing connections between the 1855 College of California (and its successor, the 1868 University of California) and the elements of design that evolved out of the early cemetery and park traditions. He stresses the character of the men of this "practical period," particularly their political, economic, and intellectual behavior. Acutely aware of the complex relationship between land and ideas, and dreams and practicality, Barth captures the ironies of their juxtaposition in early California.