Preserving the Nation: The Conservation and Environmental Movements, 1870-2000 (The American History Series) [ILLUSTRATED] (Paperback)

by Thomas R. Wellock (Author), John Hope Franklin & A. S. Eisenstadt (Editor)
Key Phrases: sanitary city, new conservation, wilderness organizations, Forest Service, New York, Earth First (more...)

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Product Description
Wellock explores the international, rural, and industrial roots of modern environmentalism that emerged in the last half of the nineteenth century - three related movements in response to a rapidly expanding economy and population that depleted the nation's resources, damaged land in rural areas, and blighted cities. The first group favoured the conservation and efficient management of natural resources for production. The second, the preservationists, sought to protect scenic and wilderness areas and to sustain the spirit of the nation's pioneer heritage and virility. The third group, the urban environmentalists, sought reform to control industrial pollution and retard urban decay. Politically powerful and widely admired, resource management overshadowed the other two movements until the 1950s. After World War II, the two less-powerful strands of the movement, preservationism and urban environmentalism, wove into one, as the accelerating effects of affluence, scientific discovery, Cold War concerns, and suburbanisation led the public to value outdoor amenities and a healthy environment. This renamed 'environmental' movement focused less on efficient use of resources and more on creating healthy ecosystems and healthy people free of risks from pollution and hazardous wastes. By 1970, environmentalism enjoyed widespread popular support and bipartisan appeal. What all three movements always shared was a common recognition of the limits of America's natural resources and environment, a belief in preserving them for generations to come, and a faith in at least some government environmental action rather than relying purely on private solutions. Not only does the history of these movements bring to light much about the expanding role of government in environmental regulation and the growth of the modern American state, but a look at environmental campaigns over the course of the twentieth century reveals a great deal about the racial, gender, and class divisions at work in the ongoing efforts to preserve the environment. Accessible, insightful, and highly affordable, "Preserving the Nation" makes an ideal core text for use in courses in Environmental History as well as thought-provoking supplemental reading for Twentieth-century America and the US survey.

From the Publisher
In the popular imagination, the roots of environmentalism lie in actions undertaken at the beginning of the twentieth century to conserve the nation's natural resources and preserve its scenic wonders. To some extent, those who have chronicled environmentalism have reinforced this perception, often writing about the heroes who helped create national parks and save forests rather than considering fundamental trends. Although most make some mention of reformers who stressed curbing pollution and urban clean-up in the period after 1945, environmental histories rarely integrate the three strands of the movement into one comprehensive study.

In Preserving the Nation, Thomas Wellock explores the international, rural, and industrial roots of modern environmentalism that emerged in the last half of the nineteenth century--three related movements in response to a rapidly expanding economy and population that depleted the nation's resources, damaged land in rural areas, and blighted cities. The first group favored the conservation and efficient management of natural resources for production. The second, the preservationists, sought to protect scenic and wilderness areas and to sustain the spirit of the nation's pioneer heritage and virility. The third group, the urban environmentalists, sought reform to control industrial pollution and retard urban decay. Politically powerful and widely admired, resource management overshadowed the other two movements until the 1950s. After World War II, the two less-powerful strands of the movement, preservationism and urban environmentalism, wove into one, as the accelerating effects of affluence, scientific discovery, Cold War concerns, and suburbanization led the public to value outdoor amenities and a healthy environment. This renamed "environmental" movement focused less on efficient use of resources and more on creating healthy ecosystems and healthy people free of risks from pollution and hazardous wastes. By 1970, environmentalism enjoyed widespread popular support and bipartisan appeal.

What all three movements always shared was a common recognition of the limits of America's natural resources and environment, a belief in preserving them for generations to come, and a faith in at least some government environmental action rather than relying purely on private solutions. Not only does the history of these movements bring to light much about the expanding role of government in environmental regulation and the growth of the modern American state, but a look at environmental campaigns over the course of the twentieth century reveals a great deal about the racial, gender, and class divisions at work in the ongoing efforts to preserve the environment.

Accessible, insightful, and highly affordable, Preserving the Nation is a thought-provoking history of environmental politics.

"Preserving the Nation is by far the best survey we have of the history of environmental activism. Wellock has a knack for getting to the heart of issues. This should be a great book for students. And for scholars -- even though I'm familiar with almost all of the works he draws on, Wellock taught me a lot!"

Adam Rome, Penn State University

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Product Details

• Paperback: 300 pages
• Publisher: Harlan Davidson; 1 edition (April 6, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0882952544
• ISBN-13: 978-0882952543
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #392,940 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

0 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Overview, March 12, 2009

By	Aikos (NC United States) - See all my reviews

There's a positive review of this book, which I haven't read yet, at
http://www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.php?id=24098

I have a list of overviews of the American environmental movement in the inside flap of a book I'm reading-- I think there must be a dozen so far.

but it's good to note, as this author does, that there isn't just ONE environmental movement, but many, all of which confusingly refer to themselves as THE green or environmental movement.

Here's a review excerpt:
"Wellock does not present any new or striking arguments in his study; what is new is the synthesis of scholarship from the past few decades into an overall narrative detailing the rise of the conservation and environmental movements. Much of the findings in this book will not be new to environmental historians, but instead this study serves as an updated textbook of sorts for younger scholars and students of environmental history. Preserving the Nation is a fairly short, compact book that reads well and will be useful for classes in environmental history, or as a succinct refresher for more experienced scholars."

I'd summarize this as a 4 star review, so that's what I gave it.