3 Berlin’s municipal socialism: a transatlantic muse for Mary Simkhovitch and New York City
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Barbara Levy Simon
Abstract
This chapter follows the work of Mary Simkhovitch, a key figure in settlement houses in New York, but also a major proponent of the notion of municipalisation, a concept developed in Germany that advocated the transferal to city ownership of previously private, corporate assets. Simkhovitch was part of a group of Americans who were strongly influenced by ideas regarding social welfare that developed in Germany at the end of the 19th Century. She sought to implement these ideas in New York by establishing the Greenwich House settlement and then serving as its headworker for 44 years. During this period, she engaged in efforts to regulate industries through the National Consumers League, spearheaded tenement reform and the creation of public housing in New York, and played a key role in efforts to expand green spaces and recreational opportunities for children, adolescents, and adults in the city.
Abstract
This chapter follows the work of Mary Simkhovitch, a key figure in settlement houses in New York, but also a major proponent of the notion of municipalisation, a concept developed in Germany that advocated the transferal to city ownership of previously private, corporate assets. Simkhovitch was part of a group of Americans who were strongly influenced by ideas regarding social welfare that developed in Germany at the end of the 19th Century. She sought to implement these ideas in New York by establishing the Greenwich House settlement and then serving as its headworker for 44 years. During this period, she engaged in efforts to regulate industries through the National Consumers League, spearheaded tenement reform and the creation of public housing in New York, and played a key role in efforts to expand green spaces and recreational opportunities for children, adolescents, and adults in the city.
Chapters in this book
- Front Matter i
- Contents vii
- List of boxes, figures and tables ix
- Notes on contributors x
- Acknowledgements xiv
- Introduction 1
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The transnational transfer of the settlement house idea
- A brief transnational history of the Settlement House Movement 15
- Berlin’s municipal socialism: a transatlantic muse for Mary Simkhovitch and New York City 35
- The French maisons sociales, Chicago’s Hull-House scheme and their influence in Portugal 51
- Settlement houses and the emergence of social work in Mandatory Palestine 73
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The interface between the Settlement House Movement and other social movements
- University extension and the settlement idea 91
- Between social mission and social reform: the Settlement House Movement in Germany, 1900–30 109
- To be an Englishman and a Jew: Basil Henriques and the Bernhard Baron Oxford and St George’s Settlement House 129
- The English settlements, the Poor Man’s Lawyer and social work, circa 1890–1939 145
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Research in settlement houses and its impact
- Putting knowledge into action: a social work perspective on settlement house research 163
- Animating objectivity: a Chicago settlement’s use of numeric and aesthetic knowledges to render its immigrant neighbours and neighbourhood knowable 181
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Final reflections
- ‘The soul of the community’: two practitioners reflect on history, place and community in two community-based practices from 1980 to 1995: St Hilda’s Community Centre in Bethnal Green and Waterloo Action Centre in Waterloo, South London 201
- Conclusion 221
- Index 231
Chapters in this book
- Front Matter i
- Contents vii
- List of boxes, figures and tables ix
- Notes on contributors x
- Acknowledgements xiv
- Introduction 1
-
The transnational transfer of the settlement house idea
- A brief transnational history of the Settlement House Movement 15
- Berlin’s municipal socialism: a transatlantic muse for Mary Simkhovitch and New York City 35
- The French maisons sociales, Chicago’s Hull-House scheme and their influence in Portugal 51
- Settlement houses and the emergence of social work in Mandatory Palestine 73
-
The interface between the Settlement House Movement and other social movements
- University extension and the settlement idea 91
- Between social mission and social reform: the Settlement House Movement in Germany, 1900–30 109
- To be an Englishman and a Jew: Basil Henriques and the Bernhard Baron Oxford and St George’s Settlement House 129
- The English settlements, the Poor Man’s Lawyer and social work, circa 1890–1939 145
-
Research in settlement houses and its impact
- Putting knowledge into action: a social work perspective on settlement house research 163
- Animating objectivity: a Chicago settlement’s use of numeric and aesthetic knowledges to render its immigrant neighbours and neighbourhood knowable 181
-
Final reflections
- ‘The soul of the community’: two practitioners reflect on history, place and community in two community-based practices from 1980 to 1995: St Hilda’s Community Centre in Bethnal Green and Waterloo Action Centre in Waterloo, South London 201
- Conclusion 221
- Index 231
