Robert Moses and the modern city
Subtitle: the transformation of New York
By: edited by Hilary Ballon and Kenneth T. Jackson.
Contributors: Ballon, Hilary.; Jackson, Kenneth T.
Edition: 1st ed.
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Co.
Published: 2007
Place of publication: New York
Language: eng
Number of pages: 336
ISBN-13: 9780393732061; 9780393732436
Subjects: Moses, Robert, -- 1888-1981; City planners -- New York (State) -- New York -- History -- 20th century -- Exhibitions; Municipal officials and employees -- New York (State) -- New York -- History -- 20th century -- Exhibitions; Public works -- New York (State) -- New York -- History -- 20th century -- Exhibitions; New York (N.Y.) -- History -- 20th century -- Exhibitions
Genres: Exhibitions.
Description: "'We are rebuilding New York, not dispersing and abandoning it': Robert Moses saw himself on a rescue mission to save the city from obsolescence, decentralization, and decline. His vast building program aimed to modernize urban infrastructure, expand the public realm with extensive recreational facilities, remove blight, and make the city more livable for the middle class. This book offers a fresh look at the physical transformation of New York during Moses's nearly forty-year reign over city building from 1934 to 1968. It is hard to imagine that anyone will ever have the same impact on New York as did Robert Moses. In his various roles in city and state government, he reshaped the fabric of the city, and his legacy continues to touch the lives of all New Yorkers. Revered for most of his life, he is now one of the most controversial figures in the city's history. Robert Moses and the Modern City is the first major publication devoted to him since Robert Caro's damning 1974 biography, The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York. In these pages eight short essays by leading scholars of urban history provide a revised perspective; stunning new photographs offer the first visual record of Moses's far-reaching building program as it stands today; and a comprehensive catalog of his works is illustrated with a wealth of archival records: photographs of buildings, neighborhoods, and landscapes, of parks, pools, and playgrounds, of demolished neighborhoods and replacement housing and urban renewal projects, of bridges and highways; renderings of rejected designs and controversial projects that were defeated; and views of spectacular models that have not been seen since Moses made them for promotional purposes."--Book flap.
Notes: "This book is published in conjunction with the three-part exhibition 'Robert Moses and the modern city'"--T.p. verso.

Includes bibliographical references (p. 324-327) and index.
Table of contents: title: Robert Moses projects : a portfolio / Andrew Moore; title: Introduction / Hilary Ballon and Kenneth T. Jackson; title: Robert Moses and the rise of New York : the power broker in perspective / Kenneth T. Jackson; title: Equipping the public realm : rethinking Robert Moses and recreation / Marta Gutman; title: Rebuilding New York in the auto age : Robert Moses and his highways / Owen D. Gutfreund; title: Robert Moses and urban renewal : the Title I program / Hilary Ballon; title: Robert Moses, race, and the limits of an activist state / Martha Biondi; title: Revolt of the urbs : Robert Moses and his critics / Robert Fishman; title: Robert Moses and city planning / Joel Schwartz; title: Catalog of built work and projects in New York City, 1934-1968: Pools; title: Beaches; title: Neighborhood playgrounds and parks; title: City parks; title: Roads and crossings; title: Housing and urban renewal; title: Miscellaneous projects.