Garden Cities of To-morrow

Background

This book offered a vision of towns free of slums and enjoying the benefits of both town (such as opportunity, amusement, and high wages) and country (such as beauty, fresh air and low rents). Howard illustrated the idea with his "Three Magnets" diagram. His ideas were conceived for the context of a capitalist economic system and sought to balance individual and community needs.

Two English towns were built as garden cities, Letchworth and Welwyn. Though they did not completely measure up to the ideal, they provided a model for controlling urban sprawl.