History, Department of

 

Date of this Version

Summer 7-18-2011

Document Type

Article

Comments

A Thesis Presented to the Faculty of The Graduate College at the University of Nebraska In Partial Fulfillment of Requirements For the Degree of Master of Arts, Major: History, Under the Supervision of Professor Timothy R. Mahoney. Lincoln, Nebraska : July, 2011

The M.A. Thesis is accompanied by a related digital project The Corrupt Network.

Copyright 2011, Brian F. Sarnacki

Abstract

At the turn of century the city of Grand Rapids, Michigan began debating plans for expanding its water supply. These debates quickly spawned corrupt dealings, which in turn produced the city’s water scandal. The city’s first genuine scandal, the water scandal marks a turning point in the city’s history. The fact that the rather ordinary bribery scheme became a scandalous event reveals the city had adopted enough of the Progressive ethos to punish corruption. The water scandal stands as the tipping point of municipal politics in Grand Rapids between Gilded Age politics rooted in personal connections and Progressive politics centered around impartial administration.

Adviser: Timothy R. Mahoney

970.zip (1150 kB)
The Corrupt Network

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