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Middletown

The Oxford Companion to United States History | 2001 | | Copyright

Middletown, influential 1920s sociological study.When Robert S. Lynd and his wife Helen Merrell Lynd arrived in Muncie, Indiana, early in 1924, the 38,000 residents of this Midwestern industrial community little realized the consequences of the “field investigation” mounted by these earnest “social anthropologists” that would appear in Middletown: A Study in Modern American Culture (1929), which has never been out of print since its publication.

Intended as an analysis of a typical American community incorporating the newest sociological methods, Middletown was in fact an anomaly in many ways: the “Small City Study” the Lynds headed was funded by John D. Rockefeller Jr. whose industrial‐relations policies Robert Lynd had earlier attacked; educated in theology and philosophy, neither of the Lynds was a trained sociologist; and Muncie was hardly typical since it was selected for the homogeneity of its population (92 percent native‐born white). Notwithstanding these quirks, the importance of Middletown and its sequel, Middletown in Transition: A Study in Cultural Conflicts (1937), is widely recognized. Middletown, in particular, is noteworthy for the richness of its oral material; its careful attention to work, homemaking, education, leisure time, and religious and community activities; and its comparisons of community life in 1890 and 1924.

After the Lynds' books, “Middletown” studies continued as a kind of cottage‐industry. The photographer Margaret Bourke‐White featured Muncie in a 1937 Life magazine photo‐essay. In 1975 a team of researchers for the “Middletown III” project arrived to start work on a series of new studies. In 1976 the National Endowment for the Humanities funded a five‐part public television documentary broadcast in 1982. The impact of the Lynds' enterprise spread far beyond Muncie, as other “field investigators” sought out other communities in an attempt to analyze what it means to “live American.”
See also Middle West, The; Social Science; Sociology; Twenties, The; Urbanization.

Bibliography

Theodore Caplow,, Howard M. Bahr,, Bruce A. Chadwick,, Reuben Hill,, and and Margaret Holmes Williamson , Middletown Families: Fifty Years of Change and Continuity, 1982.
Dwight W. Hoover , Middletown Again, Prospects: An Annual of American Cultural Studies 15 (1990): 445–86.

Martha Banta

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Paul S. Boyer. "Middletown." The Oxford Companion to United States History. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

Paul S. Boyer. "Middletown." The Oxford Companion to United States History. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O119-Middletown.html

Paul S. Boyer. "Middletown." The Oxford Companion to United States History. 2001. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O119-Middletown.html

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Middletown

The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed. | 2011 | Copyright

Middletown1 Industrial city (1990 pop. 42,762), Middlesex co., central Conn., on the west bank of the Connecticut River; settled 1650, inc. 1784, town and city consolidated 1923. Its manufactures include brake linings, marine hardware, rubber footwear, clothing, computer parts, and textiles. Shipping brought early prosperity to Middletown, and during colonial days it was the state's leading shipping, commercial, and cultural center. It is the seat of Wesleyan Univ. A bridge (1938) spans the Connecticut River to Portland.

2 Industrial city (1990 pop. 24,160), Orange co., SE N.Y., on the Wallkill River; settled 1756, inc. as a city 1888. It is in a dairying, farming, and resort area. Among the city's products are furniture, clothing, electronic products, medical instruments, footwear, tools, perfumes, flavors and extracts, pig lead and alloys, and machinery.

3 Industrial city (1990 pop. 46,022), Butler co., SW Ohio, on the Great Miami River, in a farming area; inc. 1866. Steel, aircraft parts, and paper products are manufactured. A branch of Miami Univ. is in the city.

4 Rural and resort town (1990 pop. 19,460), Newport co., SE R.I., on Rhode Island and Narragansett Bay; set off from Newport and inc. 1743. There are dairy farms and nurseries. Its name is derived from its location between Newport and Portsmouth. During the American Revolution, Middletown was pillaged (1776) by the British.

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"Middletown." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-MiddltwnUS.html

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Middletown

The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable | 2006 | | Copyright

Middletown in the US, an archetypal middle-class community. The term was popularized by R. S. and H. M. Lynd's Middletown: a study in contemporary American culture (1929), said to be based on Muncie, Indiana.

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ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Middletown." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Middletown." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-Middletown.html

ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Middletown." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-Middletown.html

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Middletown

A Dictionary of British Place-Names | 2003 | | Copyright

Middletown Armagh. ‘Middle settlement’. Killaninane 1657. The earlier Irish name was Coillidh Chanannáin, ‘Canannán's wood’.

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A. D. MILLS. "Middletown." A Dictionary of British Place-Names. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

A. D. MILLS. "Middletown." A Dictionary of British Place-Names. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O40-Middletown.html

A. D. MILLS. "Middletown." A Dictionary of British Place-Names. 2003. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O40-Middletown.html

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Middletown

Concise Dictionary of World Place-Names | 2005 | | Copyright

Middletown, USA Eleven states have cities with this name, normally because they are located midway between other cities or rivers.

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JOHN EVERETT-HEATH. "Middletown." Concise Dictionary of World Place-Names. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

JOHN EVERETT-HEATH. "Middletown." Concise Dictionary of World Place-Names. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O209-Middletown.html

JOHN EVERETT-HEATH. "Middletown." Concise Dictionary of World Place-Names. 2005. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O209-Middletown.html

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Middletown

The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed. | 2011 | Copyright

Middletown see Lynd, Robert Staughton .

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Free newspaper and magazine articles

	Back to Middletown: Three Generations of Sociological Reflections.(Review) Magazine article from: Canadian Journal of Sociology; 6/22/2001
	Middletown team refines its system. Newspaper article from: Hospital Case Management; 3/1/1998
	Residents optimistic about town's growth.(FRIDAY HOME GUIDE)(FOCUS:... Newspaper article from: The Washington Times (Washington, DC); 1/5/2007