Reveals how the New Deal made Florida what it is today

"A valuable study of how national policy was translated into social and cultural realities in one of America's most unique landscapes and what that local transformation tells us about the limits and achievements of national reform efforts."--Carroll Van West, Middle Tennessee State University

The New Deal sought to restore national economic strength in part by reallocating resources and restructuring local landscapes. Few parts of the country were transformed as significantly as South Florida.

Blurring the traditional disciplinary boundaries of design history and political science, the contributors to The New Deal in South Florida explore the impact of a wide variety of New Deal projects on the region. They examine letters and photographs--many never before published--public murals, housing, parks, and architectural and community design.

Heavily illustrated, this book offers historians and enthusiasts of Florida history a unique perspective on South Florida's growth during the 1930s. It reveals how Coral Gables, Miami Beach, Miami, and other communities were permanently altered by the impact of New Deal programs. It also reveals hidden gems of architecture and visual art that still exist today.

Editors John Stuart and John Stack's work highlights the importance of New Deal projects to the area's development into one of the nation's premier urban districts and tourist destinations.

John A. Stuart, associate professor of architecture at Florida International University, translated and illustrated The Gray Cloth and Ten Percent White: Paul Scheerbart's Novel on Glass Architecture.

John F. Stack Jr., director of the Jack D. Gordon Institute for Public Policy and Citizenship Studies at Florida International University, is the coauthor of Globalization: Debunking the Myths and coeditor of At War with Civil Rights and Civil Liberties.

No Sample Chapter Available

Awards
Florida Book Award for Florida Nonfiction, Silver - 2008

" Is an excellent example of an interdisciplinary approach to the history of the built environment."
--C20

" An important book that provides a provocative window into a time when concerted government action reshaped the landscape, both literally and figurativly, of south Florida. A fine multidisplinary collection about an important and herefore rather neglected subject."
--H-Net Reviews

"A fascinating initial foray into South Florida's New Deal history."
--Tampa Bay History

"A useful and accessible introduction to the impact of national programs on local priorities and landscapes in the Roosevelt era. Scholars interested in the material culture of the period will find stimulating models for new lines of inquiry."
--The Journal of Southern History

"Just in time to serve as an invaluable guide for evaluating our options by showing us what worked in the past."
--Florida Book Review