The First American School of Sociology

This book examines the contributions of one of the most significant programs of social science research ever established in the United States. Under the leadership of W.E.B. Du Bois, the Atlanta Sociological Laboratory made extensive contributions to the discipline which include founding the first American school of sociology, establishing the first program of urban sociological research, conducting the first sociological study on religion in the United States, and developing methodological advances that remain in use today. Placing the achievements of the Laboratory in context, the author contends that American Jim Crow racism and segregation caused the school to become marginalized and ignored instead of becoming recognized as one the most significant early departments of sociology in the United States.