Topic: Lewis Mumford

Lewis Mumford (October 19, 1895 – January 26, 1990) was an American historian, philosopher of technology and science, and influential literary critic. Particularly noted for his study of cities and urban architecture, he had a broad career as a writer. Mumford was influenced by the work of Scottish theorist Sir Patrick Geddes.

Mumford was also a contemporary and friend of Frank Lloyd Wright, Frederic Osborn, Edmund N. Bacon, and Vannevar Bush.

Mumford was born in Flushing, Queens, New York, and graduated from Stuyvesant High School in 1912. He studied at the City College of New York and The New School for Social Research, but became ill with tuberculosis and never finished his degree. In 1918 he joined the navy to serve in World War I and was assigned as a radio electrician. He was discharged in 1919 and became associate editor of The Dial, an influential modernist literary journal. He later worked for The New Yorker where he wrote architectural criticism and commentary on urban issues.