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Why do some cities grow and expand, while others dwindle and decline? Why is Milwaukee a town of the past, while Minneapolis seems reborn and infused with fture dynamism? And what do Milwaukee and Minneapolis have to tell us about other cities' prospects, the trials and destinies of industrial Cleveland and post-industrial Austin? Anthony Orum's book tells the story of these cities and, at the same time, of all cities. Here the urban past, present and future are woven into one tale. Orum traces the shift in the sources of urban growth from entrepreneurs to institutions and highlights the emergence of local government as a prominent force - indeed, as an institution - in shaping the trajectory of the urban industrial heartland. This complex trajectory includes all aspects of urban boom and bust: population trends, economic prosperity, politics and culture, as well as hard-to-pin-down qualities lika a city's collective hope and vision. Interspersing social theory, historical ethnography and comparative analysis to help explain the fates of different cities, Orum portrays factory openings, labour strikes, elections, evictions, urban blight, white flight, recession and rejuvenation to show the core histories - and future shape - of cities beyond the particulars presented in these pages. The reader should discover the key people and politics of cities along with the forces that direct them. With a variety of sources including newspapers, diaries, census materials, maps, photo essays and original oral histories, this book should be useful for anyone interested in urban transformation and for courses in urban sociology, urban politics, industrial sociology, social change and social mobility.