Bassett, Edward Murray, 1863–1948, American urban planner, b. Brooklyn, N.Y., grad. Amherst College, 1884, Columbia law school, 1886. He practiced law in Buffalo (1886–92) and New York City (1892–1948), was elected to Congress as a representative from New York (1903–5), and served on the New York Public Service Commission (1907–11). Known as the “father of American zoning,” Bassett wrote the first comprehensive zoning ordinance in the United States, adopted in 1916 by New York City. He also developed the concept of controlled access urban highways, which became known as parkways and freeways. He wrote Zoning (1936), The Master Plan (1938), and an autobiography (1939).
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