This intriguing biography of Lowell reveals a private life and a public career framed by both the heritage of a legendary family and a city in transition. Drawing on Lowell's diary as well as on private and public records, Mark I. Gelfand first traces Lowell's early years, his student days at Harvard University, his military service during World War I, and his banking career in the 1920s.

He then examines in depth Lowell's major business and civic activities, focusing on the Boston Safe Deposit and Trust Company, the Lowell Institute, Harvard University, the Museum of Fine Arts, Massachusetts General Hospital, and a variety of humanitarian organizations. Gelfand pays special attention to Lowell's role in spearheading the creation of WGBH-FM and WGBH-TV and his long-lasting contribution to public television.

Trustee for a City is a fascinating story of continuity and change that provides an inside view of Boston's cultural establishment and sheds light on Lowell's leadership in shaping the city's institutional history.