The nation and its city

About this book

In The Nation and Its City Alan Lessoff tells the story of how the politicians, federal officials, and business leaders of Gilded Age Washington created for the United States a capital city worthy to stand with - and even rival - Paris, London, and Berlin. Lessoff examines the remarkable building projects and sweeping governmental reorganizations that dramatically changed the geography and physical appearance, as well as the political and economic character, of the District of Columbia. In this first study of the politics and policy-making behind the creation of "modern" Washington, Lessoff explores a city that would seem an exception to the usual rules of urban development, one without industry and commercial growth to drive it. He argues, however, that this absence of typical economic interests allows a particularly clear view of politics and urban issues in the Gilded Age and Progressive Era. Explaining how government in post-Civil War Washington promoted prosperity, established aesthetic standards, protected health and safety, managed race relations, and resolved federal-local conflicts, Lessoff reveals the true character of American politics and policy-making in the period as never before.