Preface to the Third Edition ix
Foreword by Nilka Martell xv
Introduction: Do Not Give Way to Evil 3
1. "It Is a Veritable Paradise," 1639–1900 11
2. The First Boom, 1900–1922 27
3. Boss Flynn, 1922 41
4. "The Bronx Is a Great City," 1923–1929 51
5. "Hard Hit by the Depression," 1929–1932 65
6. The New Deal Years, 1933–1939 78
7. War Fever, 1939–1945 85
8. The Diaspora after the War, 1946–1953 91
9. "There Was No Standing Still," 1952–1953 105
10. "Moses Thinks He's God," 1954–1959 117
11. The New Boss, 1959–1963 127
12. "Horse Was the New Thing," 1960 137
13. The New "Other Half," 1962–1966 144
14. The Pondiac's Last Hurrah, 1961–1967 153
15. The Puerto Rican and the Priest, 1962–1967 164
16. Mau-mauing the City, 1967 175
17. Who Will Be Caudillo?, 1968–1969 182
18. "The Whole Place Was Caving In," 1969–1970 199
19. Interlude: Sweet Days on Charlotte Street, 1925–1951 205
20. Charlotte Street: It Was Not a "Good" Neighborhood, 1951–1961 219
21. Charlotte Street: "What a Madhouse It Was," 1961–1968 225
22. Charlotte Street: The Fires, 1969–1973 231
23. Charlotte Street: The Gangs, 1970–1975 236
24. Charlotte Street: The Collapse, 1973–1975 249
25. The Grand Concourse, 1965–1969 268
26. The Hotel and the Concourse, 1969–1976 281
27. Roosevelt Gardens, 1974–1975 288
28. The Grass Roots, 1974–1977 300
29. The President's Magic Visit, 1977–1978 311
30. Disenchantment, 1979–1980 324
31. Charlotte Street and National Politics, 1980 333
32. "The Next Part of the South Bronx," 1972–1978 345
33. "We're Still Here," 1978–1982 363
34. White Picket Fences, 1984 376
35. "South Bronx Rising," 1985–2002 389
36. Still the Poorest Urban Congressional
District in America, 2003–Mid-March 2020 441
Covid Afterword 515
Acknowledgments for the Third Edition 547
Notes 551
Bibliography 569
Third Edition Bibliography 579
Index 581