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Reform Government in Dallas 1927-1940

In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries Progressive reformers attacked the problem of corruption and lack of efficiency in city government. Reform groups in individual cities banded together in the National Municipal League and, because they believed that partisan politics were the root of the problem, attempted to devise a system which would remove politics from municipal government. Their work culminated in the introduction of the city manager, or as it is often called council-manager, form of city government. Under this plan, which closely resembles the organization of a business corporation, the elected council would serve as a board of directors and the city manager as the operating head of city government. Reformers hoped that by taking the day-to-day decisions out of the hands of elected officials and placing them in the hands of a professionally trained manager they might remove the stigma of corruption and partisanship from city government and promote efficiency. Whether this plan as it was originally conceived was or was not successful in Dallas is the subject of this thesis.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:unt.edu/info:ark/67531/metadc131422
Date08 1900
CreatorsHollingsworth, Ann Prather
ContributorsWilson, William H. (William Henry), 1935-, Dorse, Alvin C.
PublisherNorth Texas State University
Source SetsUniversity of North Texas
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
TypeThesis or Dissertation
Format3, iii, 111 leaves, Text
CoverageUnited States - Texas - Dallas County - Dallas, 1927-1940
RightsPublic, Copyright, Copyright is held by the author, unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved., Hollingsworth, Ann Prather

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