Main Street to Mainframes: Landscape and Social Change in Poughkeepsie (SUNY series, An American Region: Studies in the Hudson Valley)

The history of growth, decline, and revitalization in Poughkeepsie, New York, parallels that of many other small northeastern cities. Main Street to Mainframes tells the story of Poughkeepsie's transformation over the past three centuries--from an agricultural market town, to a small city with a diversified economy centered on Main Street, to an urban region dependent on the success of one corporation--and how this transformation has affected the lives and landscape of its inhabitants. As it adjusted to major changes in agriculture, transportation, and industry, Poughkeepsie was also shaped by the forces and tensions of immigration and race. The voices of immigrant and migrant newcomers, from the Germans, Irish, and African Americans of the nineteenth century to the Italians, Poles, and Latinos of the twentieth, enliven the narrative and offer personal perspectives on the social and demographic shifts that have taken place over the years. The book also places Poughkeepsie in the context of the mid-Hudson Valley's other cities--Kingston, Newburgh, and Hudson--as they competed from the colonial period onward. Finally, the book examines recent revitalization efforts based on tourism, culture, and the arts. More than just a local history, Main Street to Mainframes addresses important issues in urban and regional planning, community development, and sociology. Like a palimpsest, Poughkeepsie shows how past landscapes live on in the present, and how, over time, popular perceptions both shape and reflect urban and rural realities. The Valley Setting -- Poughkeepsie Grows From Village To City -- Improvements And Conflicts In The Late Nineteenth Century -- The Cityscape At The Turn Of The Twentieth Century -- A New Wave Of Immigrants Changes The Citizenry -- Municipal Reform And Urban Planning -- Changes To The Space Economy Between The Wars -- Business And Labor In The 1920s And 1930s -- Depression In Fdr's Home County -- Technological Revolution Transforms The Region : Ibm -- Ibm Triumphs With The 360 Mainframe Computer -- The Quest For Inner-city Revitalization : Urban Renewal -- Social Planning : The Model Cities Experiment -- Issues And Causes Of The 1960s -- Change In Higher Education In The Valley -- Ibm Downsizes, But The Valley Recovers -- The Nonprofit Service Sector Grows In Importance -- Main Street Struggles To Return Amid Suburban Sprawl -- Civic Identity And Social Change In The 1990s -- City And Region At The End Of The Twentieth Century -- Main Street And The Twenty-first Century Cultural Landscape -- Main Street Revisited Harvey K. Flad And Clyde Griffen. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 379-421) And Index.