Escaping the Dark, Gray City: Fear and Hope in Progressive-Era Conservation

A compelling and long-overdue exploration of the Progressive-era conservation movement, and its lasting effects on American culture, politics, and contemporary environmentalism

The turn of the twentieth century caught America at a crossroads, shaking the dust from a bygone era and hurtling toward the promises of modernity. Factories, railroads, banks, and oil fields—all reshaped the American landscape and people.

In the gulf between growing wealth and the ills of an urbanizing nation, the...