Roaring Metropolis: Businessmen's Campaign for a Civic Welfare State

Daniel Amsterdam

Published by University of Pennsylvania Press 2016

Roaring Metropolis

Businessmen's Campaign for a Civic Welfare State

Daniel Amsterdam

In the series American Business, Politics, and Society

https://doi.org/10.9783/9780812292732

Overview
Contents

About this book

Roaring Metropolis reconstructs the ideas and activism of urban capitalists in the early twentieth century as they advocated extensive government spending on an array of social programs. Focusing on Detroit, Philadelphia, and Atlanta, the book traces businessmen's quest to build cities and nurture an urban citizenry friendly to capitalism.

Author / Editor information

Daniel Amsterdam teaches history at the Georgia Institute of Technology.

Reviews

"Meticulously researched and elegantly written . . . [A] rich political history."—Planning Perspectives

"In Roaring Metropolis, Amsterdam joins a burgeoning community of scholars . . . combining compelling historical research with a sophisticated understanding of the complex nature of 'businessmen' as historical actors."—Journal of Interdisciplinary History

"Amsterdam's highly engaging political and business history . . . convincingly demonstrates that business elites played decisive roles in shaping the substance, size, and scope of civic welfare projects, as well as limiting who benefited from them."—Enterprise & Society

"Roaring Metropolis is a great success . . . a terrific read."—EH.net

"Richly researched and elegantly written, Roaring Metropolis uncovers the forgotten explosion in municipal spending and businessmen's political activism during the supposedly conservative 1920s. With three smartly chosen case studies in Detroit, Philadelphia, and Atlanta, Daniel Amsterdam illuminates distinct and unique urban political trajectories. This topic is important and the contributions original."—Sarah Phillips, Boston University

"We tend to think of 1920s cities as cockpits of cultural conflict. In this exemplary study Daniel Amsterdam gives us a new perspective, showing with subtlety and precision the modern metropolis as businessmen wanted it to be. Anyone interested in the construction of urban America needs to read this enlightening book."—Kevin Boyle, Northwestern University

"[In] deeply researched and tightly drawn chapters . . . Amsterdam traces, with greater detail and acuity than any previous scholar, what kinds of social programs businessmen supported, and why, and with what consequences."—Business History Review

Topics

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	i
Contents Publicly Available Download PDF	vii
Introduction Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	1
1. At Cross Purposes Businessmen’s Political Activism Before the Armistice Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	15
2. Detroit Businessmen at Large Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	52
3. Philadelphia Money and the Machine Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	83
4. Atlanta City Building in Black and White Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	114
5. Businessmen’s Social Politics. Beyond the Civic Welfare State Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	144
Epilogue. The 1930s and After Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	167
Notes Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	179
Index Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	221
Acknowledgments Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	227

Language: English
Publisher: University of Pennsylvania Press
Audience: College/higher education;
Pages
- Main content: 240
Illustrations
- Other: 20 illus.
Keywords: American History; Business; Public Policy; American Studies; Business; Economics; Political Science

eBook

Published: March 11, 2016
ISBN: 9780812292732