Complex sentence: Mayor Woodworth was successful in cleaning up more than the political reputation of the rapidly growing city: he proposed a complete sewer system to help fight the scourge of cholera that could devastate the city as a trading center.
Split into simpler sentences: Mayor Woodworth was successful in cleaning up more than the political reputation of the rapidly growing city. He proposed a complete sewer system to help fight the scourge of cholera that could devastate the city as a trading center.