The Sources of Regional Variation in the Severity of the Great Depression: Evidence from U.S. Manufacturing, 1919-1937
Issue Date
1999Author
Rosenbloom, Joshua L.
Sundstrom, William A.
Publisher
Cambridge University Press
Type
Article
Article Version
Scholarly/refereed, publisher version
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
The impact of the Great Depression was milder in the South Atlantic states, more severe
in the Mountain states, and surprisingly uniform across other regions of the country
—despite large diiferences in industrial structure. Employing data on 20 manufacturing
industries disaggregated by state, we analyze the relative contributions of industry mix
and location to regional variations in economic performance. Industrial composition had
a significant impact on employment growth, with regions that concentrated on durable
goods or inputs to construction faring worse than others. Long-run trends also mattered,
and explain much of the South Atlantic's more favorable performance.
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Citation
“The Sources of Regional Variation in the Severity of the Great Depression: Evidence from U.S. Manufacturing, 1919-1937,” with William A. Sundstrom, Journal of Economic History 59, no. 3 (September 1999), pp. 714-47 http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S0022050700023548
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