Jacobs, Jane

orig. Jane Butzner

born May 4, 1916, Scranton, Pa., U.S.

U.S.-born Canadian urbanologist.

She became active in urban community work while living in New York City with her architect husband. For 10 years she was an editor at Architectural Forum. Her highly influential The Death and Life of Great American Cities (1961) is a brash, passionate, and highly original reinterpretation of the multiple needs of modern urban places. The Economy of Cities (1969) discussed the importance of diversity to a city's prospects. Later works include Cities and the Wealth of Nations (1984) and Edge of Empire (1996). See also urban planning.

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▪ 2007

Jane Butzner 

      American-born Canadian urbanologist (b. May 4, 1916, Scranton, Pa.—d. April 25, 2006, Toronto, Ont.), was noted for her clear and original observations on urban life and its problems. After graduating from high school, she became a reporter at the Scranton Tribune but moved to New York City about a year later. While working as a freelance writer, she met and married architect Robert Hyde Jacobs. Already keenly interested in city neighbourhoods and their vitality, both as a writer and as a community activist, she explored urban design and planning at length with her husband. In 1952 she became an associate editor of Architectural Forum, where she worked for a decade. In 1961 she published her first full-length book, The Death and Life of Great American Cities, a brash and passionate reinterpretation of the various necessary functions of urban spaces. Translated into Japanese and several European languages, it established her as a major voice to be heeded by planners and economists. The Economy of Cities (1969) discussed the importance of diversity to a city's prosperity, and it too challenged much of the conventional wisdom on urban planning. Jacobs moved with her husband to Canada and later became a Canadian citizen. Her later works included Cities and the Wealth of Nations (1984), The Nature of Economies (2000), and Dark Age Ahead (2004).

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▪ American writer

née  Jane Butzner 

born May 4, 1916, Scranton, Pa., U.S.

died April 25, 2006, Toronto, Ont., Can.

      American-born Canadian urbanologist noted for her clear and original observations on urban life and its problems.

      After graduating from high school, Butzner worked at the Scranton Tribune. She moved to New York City in 1934, where she held several different jobs while writing articles for various newspapers and magazines. In 1944 she met and married architect Robert Hyde Jacobs. Already keenly interested in city neighbourhoods and their vitality, both as a writer and—increasingly—as a community activist, she explored urban design and planning at length with her husband. In 1952 she became an associate editor of Architectural Forum, where she worked for a decade.

      In 1961 Jacobs published her first full-length book, The Death and Life of Great American Cities, a brash and passionate reinterpretation of the multiple needs of modern urban places. The book, translated into several languages, established her as a force to be reckoned with by planners and economists. The Economy of Cities (1969) discusses the importance of diversity to a city's prosperity, and it, too, challenged much of the conventional wisdom on urban planning. Opposed to the Vietnam War and worried that her sons would be drafted, Jacobs and her family moved to Canada in 1968; she later became a Canadian citizen. Her other works include Cities and the Wealth of Nations (1984) and The Nature of Economies (2000). Dark Age Ahead (2004) centred on the decline of American culture.

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