Movement from city to sub-urbs after WWII

Movement from city to sub-urbs after WWII



Movement from city to sub-urbs after WWII

Introduction

The early decades of 20th Century marked transition of United States from the rural-based society to one centered on cities. Much of move to cities occurred at end of previous century with shift from an agricultural to the manufacturing economy. Manufacturers and industry needed to be close to transportation and that meant moving to ports and railroad hubs originating in newly formed urban areas. From 1860 to 1900, number of urban areas increased fivefold. In 1860 there were only nine American cries with more than 100,000 inhabitants; by 1900 there were 38. (Ahern 1997)

It was in early decades of new century that familiar flow between urban and suburban areas first took place. As population and businesses rushed into cities to live off of each other, land values rose, as values in inner city rose, residential and warehouse uses were no longer feasible. Improved roadway systems and an extensive railroad network enabled workers to live just beyond city limits. The nation was experiencing first migration out of inner cities to suburbs.

The Great Depression

The economic crisis of 1930s is often tied to 1929 stock market crash. The crash serves as the useful historical marker, but there were other underlying causes of most severe depression in our history. The most agreed upon reasons include: acute overcapacity, or overproduction of goods; restrictive tariff and war-debt policies adopted following World War I that limited foreign markets for American goods; easy money policies that led to soaring levels of credit; and runaway speculation in stock market.

The Great Depression had the profound impact on financial system. Having the third of workforce jobless can have that effect. The broader reorganization of financial system included addressing pressing needs of real estate industry. The federal government had recognized importance of real estate market during Depression. It was obvious that for economy to find its way out of Depression, real estate would have to play the large part. (Stinson 2005)

Moreover, social interdependence also contrasts with modal orientation of generation of 1914, the generation that fits conditions of theory proposed here. (The conclusion that there is the fit is possible because theory is not tied uniquely to Great Depression and World War II; it has general applicability.) This difference between orientations is revealed by Wohl's (1979) monumental cross-cultural study of Europeans at end ...