Vanishing Ann Arbor by Patti F. Smith and Britain Woodman (review)

The second half of the twentieth century and the first decades of the twenty-first were, in the words of a recent Wall Street Journal article, "the golden age of the American college town." These relatively small cities and towns play host to two distinct groups of people. The first is a traditional, relatively permanent group consisting of university faculty and staff, local businesspeople, professional and managerial workers, artists and performers, inventors and entrepreneurs, etc. They are generally well-educated, creative, sophisticated people who are often liberal in their personal opinions and politics. The second group is much more transient in nature—the university students. Each year a new group of freshmen arrives, and a group of seniors graduate and most move on to other locations. The enrollments at the largest institutions now fall into the range of 40,000, 50,000, and even 60,000 per year. This means that many more people experience college communities than their "official" population figures would indicate. In some cases, the overall number runs into the millions over time and college towns often have a profound impact on those who experience them. Some of the most prominent include Cambridge, MA; Berkeley CA; Boulder, CO; Madison, WI; Chapel Hill, NC; Austin, TX; Athens, GA; and Ann Arbor, MI. Books about such places can be of interest to a surprisingly large number of people.

Vanishing Ann Arbor is a book that focuses on the buildings, places, people, and events which have characterized the city since its founding in 1824. It does not deal with the history of the University of Michigan nor should it, as there is an extensive series of books which cover this subject. Neither is it a formal history of the city in the academic sense; Jonathan Marwil's The History of Ann Arbor (1987) is probably the best example of that. Interestingly enough, there is no single, comprehensive work on the evolution of the city. Readers must consult a variety of publications by Grace Shackman, Susan Wineberg, Martha Keller, etc., to get a complete picture. Vanishing Ann Arbor is a welcome addition to this list. It is a nostalgic and entertaining series of narratives and illustrations of things that have shaped the community, including such topics as early history, eating and drinking, hospitality and recreation, shopping, and city services. There is even a description of the short-lived "red light district." There are extensive lists of businesses that have come and gone over the years and some that still survive. As a fifty plus year resident of the city, it reminded this reviewer of how much the retail character of the city has changed. The authors admit that they could not cover everything, but by and large they have done a good job. I would have given more coverage to Ulrichs among the bookstores, and WAAM among the radio stations. Also, I would have included a short discussion on the impact of football Saturdays on life in Ann Arbor. These minor omissions do not detract seriously from the quality of the book. In fact, an absence of a name only serves to stimulate the reader's memory and even adds to the enjoyment.

The book itself is well-written and engaging, and the text is well-balanced, with more than 115 illustrations (mostly photos). A highly enjoyable read and one that anyone who is familiar with Ann Arbor would feel the same about. Vanishing Ann Arbor is a valuable addition to the collection of books on the history of one of America's most prominent college towns.