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The article titled "Savannah's Midnight Hour: Boosterism, Growth, and Commerce in a Nineteenth-Century American City" by Lisa L. Denmark provides a thorough analysis of Savannah, Georgia's municipal management and development from the 1820s to the 1880s. The author argues that Savannah's white leaders adhered to an ideology of over-optimistic risk-taking and municipal entrepreneurship, drawing inspiration from both the antebellum North and the pre-war proslavery and postwar white supremacist contexts of the city and the South. The article examines the city's successes and failures in infrastructure investments and public service projects, as well as its economic position relative to other southern cities. The author situates Savannah within the larger context of the state, region, and nation during the mid- to late-nineteenth century, highlighting its alignment with national and international trends in urban economic development and financial management. The article is organized chronologically, focusing on pivotal moments in the city's development and the dynamics between political leaders, economic boosters, and government policies. The conclusion discusses the lessons learned by Savannah's leaders and their efforts to achieve a more sustainable balance between investment in infrastructure and public services and financial solvency. The author's analysis challenges traditional historiographical conceptions of the South as a "place apart" and emphasizes the compatibility between slavery, white supremacist resistance to Reconstruction, and the expansion of global capitalism. The article is accessible to both scholars and general [Extracted from the article] |
