Atlanta: Earth's Greatest City

In "The Stone Dogs," Eric von Shrakenberg refers to Archona as "Earth's greatest city" and describes it in detail, discussing its 12 million people, the nuclear reactors, its industrial/post-industrial development, etc.

So how might we get it so Atlanta, Georgia is "Earth's greatest city" in the equivalent timeframe (IIRC 1980 or so)?

No nuclear wars knocking off more well-known competitors, please.

This is in post-1900 because of the timeframe, but the POD can be anytime.
 
I'm not sure if it can be done, MP.

Atlanta is farther inland than most of the world's major cities, and the only possible way I could see it is by some circumstance it becomes the major gateway for US immigration across the West.
 
I'm not sure if it can be done, MP.

Atlanta is farther inland than most of the world's major cities, and the only possible way I could see it is by some circumstance it becomes the major gateway for US immigration across the West.

Yeah. IIRC Atlanta only came into existence (or at least prominence) because the railroads crossed there.

That means, unless there's a reason to found it earlier, its existence depends on the construction of railroads in North America.
 
Yeah. IIRC Atlanta only came into existence (or at least prominence) because the railroads crossed there.

That means, unless there's a reason to found it earlier, its existence depends on the construction of railroads in North America.

And you can't really speed that very easily, especially as railroads reached North America a mere handful of years after the Stephenson Rocket.

I can see a few things that would improve its standing. The first would be keeping a chunk of the United States government there (perhaps as a conciliatory measure after the Civil War) and the second would it being the primary major city of the United States south. But I can't see it being bigger than New York, Chicago or Los Angeles, let alone any of the major world cities.
 
Well, if you put the POD back far enough, might be doable: Dutch New York and a South-centered *US with it's capital at Atlanta. Make it a more centralizing state and have much more of the country's economy (financial, manufacturing, etc.) centered around the capital, so it grows like topsy, and you might get something along those lines. Post-1900 POD? Very unlikely circumstances required.

Bruce
 
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