author
Robert Hunter
1874–1942
A reform-minded writer who helped bring the realities of poverty into public view, he mixed sharp social observation with firsthand experience in settlement work and activism. His career later took an unexpected turn into golf course architecture, giving his life story an unusual breadth.
1 Audiobook
Violence and the Labor Movement
by Robert Hunter
About the author
Born in Terre Haute, Indiana, in 1874, Robert Hunter was an American sociologist, author, and reformer. After graduating from Indiana University, he worked in social service circles in Chicago, including at Hull House, and became closely involved with Progressive Era debates about urban life, labor, and inequality.
He is best remembered for writing about poverty in the United States in a direct, accessible way that reached a wide audience. His book Poverty became an important early study of social conditions, and his public work connected research, activism, and politics.
Hunter's life did not stay within one field. Alongside his writing and reform work, he also became known as a golf course architect, making him a striking example of a public intellectual whose interests ranged far beyond the page.