Photo courtesy of David Lawrence. Taken after a two-dog lunch at Virginia Coney Island in Jackson, MI.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
After receiving a doctorate in American Civilization from the University of Pennsylvania I took a job as a curator of power and shop machinery at The Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan. From there, I moved to Washington, D.C. to serve as a historian of engineering with the Historic American Engineering Record (HAER), a part of the National Park Service. While at HAER I ran a project to document the history of the Quincy Mining Company in Upper Michigan. I found the history of Michigan copper to be so interesting and so rich in archival records that in 1981 I took a faculty position at Michigan Technological University in nearby Houghton.
I taught at Tech from 1981 to 2012. Before retiring and becoming an Emeritus Professor of History, I wrote four books about the Copper Country’s mines, technologies, communities and people. For thirty years of my tenure I also taught a class titled “The Automobile in America”. My passion endured while teaching nearly 4,000 students on the topic during that time, but I had not published any books about the automobile.
That had to change. Nearing retirement, I set a goal to finally write my “car book.” It would be a cultural history, covering the Fifties and the Sixties, that would lay out the auto’s impact on the nation. At the same time, it would be a highly personal memoir. It would be an “auto biography,” recounting my life growing up with cars.
Hearing the roar at Jackson Motor Speedway. Taking trips to see relatives in Indiana and Illinois. Listening to “Maybellene” and “GTO” on the car radio. Parking in remote locations to neck with my first love. Cruising Vermilion Street in Danville, Illinois. Driving a muscle car and drag racing Chevelle Super Sports and Oldsmobile 442s. Rolling a car, wheels to wheels. Chauffeuring the Prom Queen and her court around the track at Danville High’s football stadium. The automobile seemed to be the common thread that ran through all my life's adventures.
The book is finally done and has been published by Wayne State University Press. I think you will be informed and entertained by MOTOR CITY BOOMER: THE CAR CULTURE THAT DEFINED GENERATION. Expect to learn a lot, laugh a lot, and cry three or four times.
CONNECT WITH ME:
Fill out the form to say hello, ask a question, book a talk, or share a story about how car culture impacted in your life in the 50s and 60s.
ADDITIONAL BOOKS:
My previous research and writing has focused mainly on copper mining in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. These four books detail the Copper Country’s mines, technologies, communities, and people. Click on each book below to learn more.
Beyond the Boundaries: Life and Landscape at the Lake Superior Copper Mines, 1840-1875
Cradle to Grave: Life, Work, and Death at the Lake Superior Copper Mines
Hollowed Ground: Copper Mining and Community Building on Lake Superior, 1840s -1990s
Old Reliable: An Illustrated History of the Quincy Mining Company