A Vision for London, 1889-1914 : Labour, Everyday Life and the LCC Experiment

The book tests the vision of the early London County Council (LCC) and of its leaders, the London Progressives, against its policies and achievements. It documents struggles to change social and labor conditions, to influence public culture and to hire aspiring young visionaries--both men and women--into white collar jobs. This history has left its mark on the present London political situation--central London government has been abolished and once again many Londoners want to recreate it. Both the achievements and the disillusions fostered in the past still influence the present London crisis. Attitudes shaped by bureacracy and the problems of vested interests still survive. Pennybacker's social history tests the vision of London Progressivism against its practitioners' accomplishments. The London County Council was a the world's largest municipal government and a laboratory for social experimentation before the Great War. It sought to master the problems of metropolitan amelioration, political economy and public culture. Pennybacker's social history tests the vision of London Progressivism against its practitioners' accomplishments. She argues that the historical memory of the hopes inspired by LCC achievement and the disillusions spawned by failure, are potent forces in today's deeply ambivalent responses to metropolitan politics in London. The `new women', bohemian London, scandal in the building industry, midwifery, lodging houses, children's provision and the music hall were all provocative issues in LCC work. Their story richly evokes life in the turn-of-the-century metropolis and illustrates the complexities of `municipal socialism' BOOK COVER......Page 1 HALF-TITLE......Page 2 TITLE......Page 4 COPYRIGHT......Page 5 DEDICATION......Page 6 CONTENTS......Page 8 FIGURES......Page 9 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS......Page 10 ABBREVIATIONS......Page 13 INTRODUCTION......Page 16 1 THE WAYS OF LIFE, ASPIRATIONS AND POLITICAL CULTURE OF MEN AND WOMEN ‘BLACKCOATED WORKERS’......Page 39 2 ‘THE INDUSTRIAL REORGANISATION OF SOCIETY’: THE LCC WORKS DEPARTMENT, A MUNICIPAL SOCIALIST EXPERIMENT......Page 84 3 THE APPETITE FOR MANAGING OTHER PEOPLE’S LIVES......Page 128 CONCLUSION......Page 187 SOURCES......Page 191 NOTES......Page 193 INDEX......Page 237 1. The Ways Of Life, Aspirations And Political Culture Of Men And Women 'blackcoated Workers' -- 2. 'the Industrial Reorganisation Of Society': The Lcc Works Department, A Municipal Socialist Experiment -- 3. The Appetite For Managing Other People's Lives. Susan D. Pennybacker. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. The world's largest municipal government at the opening of this century sought to master the prob- lems of metropolitan amelioration, political econ- omy & public culture. 'London Progressivism' is tested against its practitioners' accomplishments.