This dissertation in the history of ideas examines progressive-era public administration theory. Home rule, civil service, centralized executive power, municipalization of public utilities, expert management, and other reforms gradually established a modern public administration in Cleveland between 1901 and 1915. These changes to the form and function of Cleveland's government occurred largely under the stewardship of six social reformers: Newton Baker, Edward Bemis, Harris Cooley, Frederic Howe, Tom Johnson, and Peter Witt. Baker, Bemis and Howe were products of America's first public administration program at Johns Hopkins University. A textual analysis on their articles, books and speeches is undertaken to discover the public philosophies behind their motivations and actions. This analysis suggests that the politics-administration dichotomy, the promotion of efficiency and Hofstadter's class-anxiety thesis are not useful for understanding their ideas, motivations or actions. Rather, their primary influences were three diverse perspectives which have been lost or distorted over time--Georgism, the Social Gospel movement and municipal republicanism. Although from different intellectual origins, these perspectives shared an urban-centered communitarian philosophy which provided a strong rationale for development of local public administration.
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