Caroline Bartlett Crane and Municipalsanitation: Applied Sociology in the Progressive Era

Applied Sociology occupies contested territory between academic sociology and social activism. An examination of applied sociology at the turn of the 2dh century, as practiced by Caroline Bartlett Crane, Unitarian minister and Progressive Era social reformer, provides an excellent case s t u 4 of these disciplinary debates. This article examines Crane’s efforts to utilize the new discipline of sociology to improve society through municipal sanitation. Sociology and community social reform were often closely linked in the Progressive Era. Early reformers and applied sociologists involved in sociology at the turn of the 2dh century would likely be puzzled by the academic focus of the field today and dismayed by the privileged position of scholarship over social reform in contemporary sociology. One can only question how sociology j . mission and message might d#er today if the legacy of early, community-based sociology was more widely known within the discipline. If the history of sociology is a contentious arena, the history of sociology outside of the academy is even more so. Questions of identity, definition, mission, and methods surrounded sociology from the beginning; and they persist to the present moment. What is sociology? What are the goals of sociology? Who qualifies as a sociologist? These questions echo through the years. Early sociologists debated issues of social reform vs. objective research, disciplinary boundaries and research methods in a battle, broadly drawn, between academic sociology on the one hand and social activism on the other. Applied sociology occupies contested territory between these two extremes. An examination of applied sociology at the turn of the twentieth century, as practiced by Caroline Bartlett Crane, Unitarian minister and Progressive Era social reformer, provides an excellent case study of these disciplinary debates (Rynbrandt, 1999). This article examines Crane’s efforts to utilize the new discipline of sociology to improve society through municipal sanitation. The Journal of Applied SociologyISociological Practice, Vol. 21 No. I / Vol. 6 No. 1, Spring 2004: 84-94. 0 Society for Applied Sociology and the Sociological Practice Association at GRAND VALLEY STATE UNIV LIB on May 20, 2013 jax.sagepub.com Downloaded from Rynbrandt: Caroline Bartlett Crane liminal experiences (past and present) of individuals outside of academic sociology illustrate boundary and identity issues that still perplex sociology today. Sociology and community social reform were often closely linked in the Progressive Era. Early reformers and applied sociologists involved in sociology at the turn of the twentieth century would likely be puzzled by the academic focus of the field today and dismayed by the privileged position of scholarship over social reform in contemporary sociology. One can only question how sociology’s mission and message might differ today if the legacy of early community based sociology was more widely known within the discipline. CAROLINE BARTLETT CRANE (1858-1935) Caroline Bartlett was born in Hudson, Wisconsin in 1858. Her father was a Mississippi River steamboat captain, among other occupations, during her childhood and youth. Her mother devoted a great deal of time and energy to the care of Caroline’s frail younger brother. As a consequence, Caroline breached tradition and became closely attached to her father, rather than focus on her mother’s more domestic pursuits. Caroline’s father encouraged her educational goals, and in 1879 Caroline graduated as class valedictorian from Carthage (Illinois), College. As one of the first generation of women college graduates (1 8601880) in the United States, Caroline faced unusual challenges and opportunities. She was much better educated than women in previous generations, but few professional positions had been created to enable these able and eager women to fulfill their potential (Solomon, 1985). Women, such as Caroline Bartlett Crane, struggled to find their place in the world as an educated person. To compound the problem for Caroline, early on she determined to be not only a well educated women in a world only slowly accepting that status, but she also decided that her life’s goal was to enter the liberal ministry. Although her parents had encouraged her goal to pursue a college degree, they did not approve of her desire to enter the ministry in an era in which this was perceived as a highly improper profession for women. Therefore, she followed a typical path for educated women in that period, first becoming a teacher and later a journalist to fill the time until she could enter the profession of her choice. Although she was not allowed to attend seminary, she eventually received private instruction and was ordained into the Unitarian ministry in Kalamazoo, Michigan in 1889. She was one of the first ordained women to occupy a pulpit in Michigan, and immediately began to use her church as a vehicle for social reform. In order to provide the best possible social