This chapter takes a deep dive into Robert Moses’ sweeping and often contentious impact on New York City, moving well beyond his famous highway projects to explore his role in housing, slum clearance, and urban renewal. Drawing on case studies, firsthand accounts, and investigative journalism, the chapter lays bare the complicated and frequently troubling effects of Moses’ policies, especially for the city’s most vulnerable residents.
The story opens with a growing wave of doubt among reformers and city planners about the ethics and effectiveness of Moses’ slum clearance efforts. People like Hortense Gabel and Lawrence Orton, who spent time in affected neighborhoods and scrutinized official data, began to notice a troubling pattern: instead of improving lives, these projects often pushed families into even worse situations. Gabel’s visits to Title I sites revealed that, far from revitalizing neighborhoods, slum clearance often left families in more desperate circumstances. Orton, meanwhile, uncovered that relocation statistics were being manipulated—public housing vacancies were counted multiple times, creating the illusion that displaced families were being properly rehoused. Walter Fried’s observations in his own neighborhood painted a similar picture, with signs of decline like overcrowding and the conversion of single-family homes into tenements becoming increasingly common.
The chapter zooms in on the Manhattantown urban renewal project on the West Side in the early 1950s, a case that came to symbolize the broader failures of Moses’ approach. Here, thousands of poor, mostly Black and Puerto Rican families were uprooted and pushed into already overcrowded, deteriorating neighborhoods. Instead of eliminating slums, the project simply spread blight and created new pockets of poverty. With the press largely silent, reformers and concerned citizens took it upon themselves to document the fallout, gathering evidence of the worsening conditions.
Orton and his colleagues at the City Planning Commission launched a quiet but thorough investigation, working out of sight of Moses. They estimated that at least 170,000 people—mainly low-income and nonwhite—had been displaced in just seven years, though the real number was likely higher due to incomplete records and data manipulation. Their findings were grim: most displaced families never received the promised help or access to public housing. Instead, they disappeared into overcrowded slums or contributed to the creation of new ones. The report warned that unless relocation practices changed, urban renewal would only deepen the city’s problems.
The Women’s City Club, initially moderate in its reform efforts, conducted its own study of Manhattantown. Their findings challenged common stereotypes: many slum residents kept tidy, stable homes and had strong community ties. The neighborhood, though poor, was racially integrated and offered affordable rents and a sense of belonging. The club’s investigation highlighted the deep anxiety among residents facing displacement, who saw few alternatives because of barriers like race, poverty, and family size. Their work underscored the helplessness of the poor and fueled outrage over Moses’ relocation policies, which failed to offer decent, affordable options.
The chapter doesn’t shy away from the harsh realities faced by families evicted for redevelopment. Despite Moses’ public promises of preferential treatment and new housing, displaced residents were often discouraged from applying, faced rents they couldn’t afford, and received little to no help finding new homes. Many ended up in even worse conditions—damp basements, overcrowded tenements, and vermin-infested buildings—paying more for less and suffering from isolation and declining living standards. The Women’s City Club’s documentation of these hardships was often suppressed or rewritten by Moses and his allies, who manipulated official reports to paint a rosier picture.
Meanwhile, the press, largely under Moses’ sway, failed to dig into the real story behind urban renewal. Even when federal investigations uncovered profiteering and corruption—developers snapping up city property at bargain prices and failing to deliver on their promises—the press steered clear of implicating Moses and let the story fade. As a result, Moses’ reputation as a benevolent city builder endured, despite mounting evidence to the contrary.
The chapter closes with a look at Moses’ life, tracing his path from his family background and Yale education to his rise as a powerful public figure. This more personal portrait stands in stark contrast to the accounts of suffering caused by his policies, highlighting the complexity of his legacy: a visionary who transformed New York, but often at a steep human cost.