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Writing this thesis was a major undertaking, and I would not have been able to complete it without the assistance and encouragement of my friends, colleagues, and professors. I would like to thank Craig Colten, my advisor and committee chairman, and Dydia Delyser and Michael Leitner, my committee members, for their generous assistance and advice for writing this thesis. I would also like to thank John Grimes and Miles Richardson for their guidance during my early days as a graduate student. Farrell Jones provided invaluable technical assistance for the GIS portions of this research. Garland Weidner and the staff of the Office of the Assessor of Caddo Parish were very patient and helpful with the archival portion of this research. I would like to thank my friends, Chris, Samantha, Paul, Diane, Amy, Derrick, Marsha, and Chris, for their support both in and out of the classroom. Finally, I would like to thank my parents, Robert and Barbara, my brother, Clark, and my fiancee, Kelly, for supporting me at every step of this project