Originally published in 1976 this book provides a source of essential material on the founding fathers of British and American geography. An assessment of 150 years, the period in which geography became an organized discipline, the book concentrates on the development of the regional concept. This concept seeks to understand the areal associations of human and physical phenomena and their inter-relations over the earth's surface and is now generally regarded as the core of geographical studies. Through the work of its leading exponents, the author examines the changing meaning of the content, concepts, procedures and expertise involved in this study.