The Sources of Regional Variation in the Severity of the Great Depression: Evidence from U.S. Manufacturing, 1919-1937 / Joshua L. Rosenbloom, William A. Sundstrom.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Rosenbloom, Joshua L.

Contributor:

National Bureau of Economic Research.

Sundstrom, William A.

Series:

Working Paper Series (National Bureau of Economic Research) no. w6288.

NBER working paper series no. w6288

Language:

English

Physical Description:

1 online resource: illustrations (black and white);

Other Title:

The Sources of Regional Variation in the Severity of the Great Depression

Place of Publication:

Cambridge, Mass. National Bureau of Economic Research 1997.

Summary:

The severity of the Great Depression in the United States varied by region. Most notably compared with the rest of the country, the South Atlantic states experienced a milder contraction while the Mountain states suffered more severely. The impact of the contraction was more" uniform across other regions of the country--surprisingly so, considering the large regional" differences in industrial structure. We employ data from the biennial Census of Manufactures on" 20 individual manufacturing industries disaggregated by state to analyze the relative" contributions of industry mix and location to regional variations in economic performance during" the period 1919-1937. Industrial composition had a significant impact on regional employment" growth, with regions that concentrated on the production of durable goods or inputs to the" construction sector tending to fare worse than others. Long-run regional trends also played an" important role in regional variation, and explain much of the South Atlantic region's more" favorable performance over the cycle.

Notes:

Print version record

November 1997.