The City Beautiful Movement

City Beautiful was directly linked to Progressivism late 1800’s and into the new century. The City Beautiful leaders believed that great emphasis should be placed on creating beautiful cities, which would in turn inspire its citizens to higher moral and civic virtue. The City Beautiful concept was paralleled and encouraged by the reform movement, which was largely concerned with curbing corruption in government, ending the exploitation of the working class, and improving living conditions in major American cities. Supporters also believed in beauty and its capacity to shape human thought and behavior. Fuel for the movement was a strange mixture of a sincere sense of responsibility to improve the lives of the inner city poor and a fear of these same people if conditions were not improved. As important as beauty was to the movement, environmental conditions were a close second.

The World's Columbian Exposition of 1893 in Chicago was a huge turning point for city planning and demonstrated, among other things, the importance of architectural dignity and its effect on civic pride. The Exposition featured Beaux-Arts and its monumental architectural style complemented with open spaces and water.

Mayor Frank K. Mott was impressed with the Exposition, embraced the City Beautiful movement, and sought to improve Oakland. Fortunately, Oakland’s problems were different, and in some ways far less daunting than bigger, grittier cities East of the Mississippi River. Oakland was still in a formative stage, yet growing at a phenomenal rate. Mott and his supporters had the opportunity to intervene and shape Oakland as it grew.

Among the may components of Mott’s own City Beautiful plan, which included a new City Hall, was the transform the Lake Merritt area into parkland; a cultural oasis in the middle of the rapidly growing city. To this end, the City purchased and removed all of the private residences along the shore of Lake Merritt with the exception of the home owned by John and Terrilla Wright. This Victorian was bought and transformed into the Oakland Public Museum.