Overview

J. Irwin Miller:The Shaping of An American Town tells the life story of this remarkable man who led Cummins Engine Company from its roots as a small, family business to an international Fortune 500 company and transformed Columbus, Indiana, into a gem of midcentury modern architecture. As president and then chairman of Cummins, Miller emphasized a corporation's responsibility to the community in which it was located and its other stakeholders. Miller's commitment to Columbus architecture inspired such legends as I. M. Pei, Eliel and Eero Saarinen, Kevin Roche, and others to contribute their designs to what has become one of the most artistically revolutionary towns in the country. Columbus's unique public art and architecture continue to inspire young architects and attract visitors from around the world. Miller has also played a significant role in the American civil rights movement, securing cosponsorship for the March on Washington and working with presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson to help pass the Civil Rights Act. Martin Luther King Jr., once called Miller ""the most socially responsible businessman in the country.""

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9780253043818

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J. Irwin Miller: The Shaping of an American Town (Indiana University Press). One of the challenges in writing this book - a good challenge, actually - was braiding together into a smooth narrative all the different interests of this man, in some ways an American Medici, writes Kriplen. Not only was Irwin Miller the longtime head of Cummins, the Fortune 500 engine company in Columbus, IN, but he worked with presidents John Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson on civil rights legislation, seriously studied the violin, and of course hatched the plan to have top rank architects design public buildings in Columbus, making it a gem of midcentury modern architecture. * Traces is a quarterly publication of the Indiana Historical Society. *

Author Information

Nancy Kriplen is the author of Dwight Davis: The Man and The Cup and The Eccentric Billionaire: John D. MacArthur—Empire Builder, Reluctant Philanthropist, Relentless Adversary. She worked on the editorial staffs of Time magazine and Scripps-Howard's Indianapolis Times, and her freelance articles have appeared in the New York Times, Smithsonian, Bloomberg.com, Discover, and other publications

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