It's Hard to Change a City

Changing an organization are a city from the inside out is a very tough job. It just happens that I have spent a lot of time in at least a dozen cities and my interest in sociology has kept me thinking about those cities long after I left them.
Take Chattanooga, Tn. for instance, that's a town of about 160,000 that has gone through several metamorphosis'. When I first went to the city it was 1942 and the place was bustling with soldiers and the whole south side area was filled with railroad tracks.
On these tracks were a dozen huffing and puffing steam engines, waiting for army boys to either load or unload and then go unto their next destination. Chattanooga was a railroad hub for the whole mid south.
A half mile south there was a large tanning factory to furnish leather goods for many different uses. When the wind blew in from the south the smell was putrid and messed up the smell of the steaks being served up at the Reed House.
In addition there were many factories belching smoke and steam to the point that the area became known for having a large number of people with asthma and other lung problems.
In those days the public became aware that a few people were becoming very rich and at the same time were very particular about which other industry they would allow in the city. The river, the railroads and the general location of the town appealed to many manufacturers wanting to expand. The locals did not want others to compete for their workers nor did they want others to raise wages to a new level.
If there is interest; we will show in future posts how Chattanooga went through it's several metamorphosis.