The Thirty-Year War: A History of Detroit’s Streetcars, 1892–1922 By Neil J. Lehto

Abstract

Neil Lehto’s The Thirty-Year War: A History of Detroit’s Streetcars, 1892–1922 is a fascinating tale chronicling three decades of public ownership debate, which culminated when the city government bought the private, franchised streetcar operators. Lehto skillfully weaves together a tangled web of political disputes, local elec tions, technology breakthroughs, corporate intrigues, and labor issues. Transportation aficionados, urban and political historians, and anyone interested in Detroit’s overall history will find this work entertaining and enlightening.