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Author Williams, Mason B.

Title City of ambition : FDR, La Guardia, and the making of modern New York / Mason B. Williams.

Publication Info. New York : W.W. Norton & Company, [2013]
©2013

Copies

Location Call No. OPAC Message Status
 Axe Special Collections Rosen  974.71 W674c 2013    ---  Lib Use Only
Edition First edition.
Description xvii, 494 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations ; 25 cm
text txt rdacontent
unmediated n rdamedia
volume nc rdacarrier
Bibliography Includes bibliographical references (pages 411-473) and index.
Contents I. Foundations -- Beginnings -- A season in the wilderness -- The deluge -- II. The New Deal -- "Jobs is the cry" -- The New Deal's "lost legacy" -- From fusion to confusion -- New dealer for the duration -- III. War and postwar -- The local politics of foreign policy -- The battle of New York -- "I hope others will follow New York's example."
Summary Describes the revitalization of New York during the Great Depression as President Roosevelt and Mayor LaGuardia worked together to build parks, bridges, and schools and put people to work by channeling federal resources into cities and counties.
"City of Ambition is a brilliant history of the New Deal and its role in the making of modern New York City. The story of a remarkable collaboration between Franklin Roosevelt and Fiorello La Guardia, this is a case study in creative political leadership in the midst of a devastating depression. Roosevelt and La Guardia were an odd couple: patrician president and immigrant mayor, fireside chat and tabloid cartoon, pragmatic Democrat and reform Republican. But together, as leaders of America's two largest governments in the depths of the Great Depression, they fashioned a route to recovery for the nation and the master plan for a great city. Roosevelt and his "Brain Trust"--Shrewd, energetic advisors such as Harold Ickes and Harry Hopkins -- sought to fight the Depression by channeling federal resources through America's cities and counties. La Guardia had replaced Tammany Hall cronies with policy experts, such as the imperious Robert Moses, who were committed to a strong public sector. The two leaders worked closely together. La Guardia had a direct line of communication with FDR and his staff, often visiting Washington carrying piles of blueprints. Roosevelt relied on the mayor as his link to the nation's cities and their needs. The combination was potent. La Guardia's Gotham became a laboratory for New Deal reform. Roosevelt's New Deal transformed city initiatives into major programs such as the Works Progress Administration, which changed the physical face of the United States. Together they built parks, bridges, and schools; put the unemployed to work; and strengthened the Progressive vision of government as serving the public purpose."--Publisher's description.
Subject Roosevelt, Franklin D. (Franklin Delano), 1882-1945.
La Guardia, Fiorello H. (Fiorello Henry), 1882-1947.
La Guardia, Fiorello H. (Fiorello Henry), 1882-1947. (OCoLC)fst00014295
Roosevelt, Franklin D. (Franklin Delano), 1882-1945. (OCoLC)fst00032031
New Deal (1933-1939) (OCoLC)fst01036721
New York (N.Y.) -- History -- 1898-1951.
New York (N.Y.) -- Politics and government -- 1898-1951.
New Deal, 1933-1939 -- New York (State) -- New York.
Depressions -- 1929 -- New York (State) -- New York.
Depressions. (OCoLC)fst00890969
Politics and government (OCoLC)fst01919741
New York (State) -- New York. (OCoLC)fst01204333
Chronological Term 1898-1951
Genre/Form History. (OCoLC)fst01411628
ISBN 9780393066913 (hardcover)
0393066916 (hardcover)
9780393348989
0393348989
Standard No. 40022328723

 
    
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