Great Plains Studies, Center for
Date of this Version
1991
Abstract
Orville D. Menard's Political Bossism in MidAmerica is an in-depth account of the political machine that controlled Omaha, Nebraska, during the first third of the twentieth century. Thomas Dennison, the man who stood at the helm of that machine, is the book's central character, and the author scrutinizes Dennison's long and colorful career from almost every imaginable angle. Furthermore, Menard keeps Dennison and his city in their national context. Tom Dennison was one of many pragmatic urban bosses who came to power in cities filled with immigrants needing powerful friends who could help them in times of need. In return for or in anticipation of that assistance, foreign born voters willingly supported their benefactors' candidates for public office. Dennison also acted as a liaison between city hall and the legitimate and illegitimate business communities.
Comments
Published in GREAT PLAINS QUARTERLY 11:4 (Fall 1991). Copyright © 1991 Center for Great Plains Studies, University of Nebraska–Lincoln.