Migration from Appalachia: Central Appalachians in Midwestern Cities
- Scope
- Introductory Material
- Subject Headings
- Call Numbers
- Clippings File
- Books
- Journals
- Bibliographies
- Encyclopedias
- Other Relevant Sources
Scope
In the 20th century, Appalachians have left the mountains for urban areas in search of jobs and opportunities unavailable in Appalachia. For Appalachians in the coal mining regions of Eastern Kentucky and Southern West Virginia, this often meant seeking a new life in the urban areas of the Midwest. Chicago, Cleveland, and Cincinnati, among other cities, were favored destinations of many Appalachian migrants. Many Appalachians were faced with discrimination and hardship when they arrived in their new home. This Pathfinder covers the human movement from Central Appalachia to Midwestern urban areas, and the problems that migrants and cities faced when the rural newcomers arrived.
Please note that all material in this Pathfinder can be located in the W.L. Eury Appalachian Collection except where otherwise noted.
A good Introduction to t his topic appears in:
The Southern Appalachian Region: A Survey . Thomas R. Ford, ed. Lexington, KY: University Press of Kentucky, 1962. Pages 35-84. ASU APP COLL STACKS: HC107.K4 S58 1967.
( Also found in APP COLL RESERVES and ASU MAIN STACKS under the same call number .)
This work is also known as "The Ford Study."
Some relevant Library of Congress Subject Headings
( Search by "Subject" in the online catalog using these headings)
- Migration, Internal (may subdivide geographically)
- Mountain People (subdivide geographically)
- Mountain Whites (Southern States) (may further subdivide geographically)
- Mountaineers (subdivide geographically)
- Rural-Urban Migration
May also subdivide geographically, e.g.:
- Rural-Urban Migration -- Appalachian Region or:
- Rural-Urban Migration -- Ohio
- Urban Poor (subdivide geographically)
Books about Appalachia and Midwest migration can usually be found within these Library of Congress Call Number ranges :
More information can be found in the
Appalachian Collection Clippings File
under the subject heading:
Migration
Some Frequently Cited or Relevant Books include the following:
Fiction:
Arnow, Harriette Louisa Simpson. The Dollmaker . New York: Avon Books, c1954, 1972. 608 pages. ASU APP COLL STACKS: PZ3 .A7654 Do 1972.
Borland, Kathryn Kilby and Helen Speicher. Good-bye to Stony Crick . New York: McGraw-Hill, 1974. 138 pages. ASU APP COLL STACKS: PZ7 .B64847 Go. (juvenile work)
Non-fiction:
Too Few Tomorrows: Urban Appalachians in the 1980s . Phillip J. Obermiller & William W. Philliber, eds. Boone, NC: Appalachian Consortium Press, 1987. 149 pages. ASU APP COLL STACKS: F217 .A65 T66.
The Urban Appalachians . by Barbara Zigli ... et al. Cincinnati: Cincinnati Enquirer, 1981. The ( Cincinnati) Enquirer's report appeared over nine days, May 3 - 11, 1981. 55 pages. ASU APP COLL STACKS: F499 .C59 M838.
Schwarzweller, Harry K., James S. Brown, and J. J. Mangalam. Mountain Families in Transitio: A Case Study of Appalachian Migration . University Park, PA: Pennsylvania State University Press, 1971. 300 pages. ASU APP COLL STACKS: HN79 .K4 S35.
Gitlin, Todd and Nancy Hollander. Uptown: Poor Whites in Chicago . New York: Harper & Row, 1970. 435 pages. ASU APP COLL STACKS: HV4046 .C36 G52.
The Invisible Minority, Urban Appalachians . William W. Philliber & Clyde B. McCoy, editors, with Harry C. Dillingham. Lexington, KY: University Press of Kentucky, 1981. 192 pages. ASU APP COLL STACKS: HN79 .A13 I58.
Journalscontaining articles relevant to Central Appalachian migration include:
Appalachian Journal: A Regional Studies Review . Boone, NC: Appalachian State University. v. 1, 1972 to present. ASU APP COLL STACKS: F216.2 .A66.
Journal of Appalachian Studies . Morgantown, WV: Regional Research Institute, West Virginia University for the Appalachian Studies Association. v. 1, 1995 to present. ASU APP COLL STACKS: F217 .A65.
Mountain Life & Work . Berea, KY: Berea College. v. 1 - 64, 1925 - 1988. ASU APP COLL STACKS: GR103 .M5.
People's Appalachia. Morgantown, WV: Peoples' Appalachian Research Collective. v. 1 - 2, 1970 - 1973. ASU APP COLL STACKS: HN79 .A13 A8.
Urban Appalachian Voice. Cincinnati, OH: Urban Appalachian Council. v. 1, 1988 to present. ASU APP COLL STACKS: F106 .J74.
Bibliographies that contain materials on this subject include:
Obermiller, Phillip. "A Short Bibliographic Essay on Urban Appalachians" Appalachian Journal . v. 5:1(Autumn 1977). See pages 151-52. ASU APP COLL STACKS: F 216.2 .A66.
( Also see previous article by Obermiller, pages 145-50: "Appalachians As An Urban Ethnic Group: Romanticism, Renaissance, or Revolution?" )
Encyclopedias that contain information on Central Appalachian migration are:
The Encyclopedia of Southern Culture . Charles Reagan Wilson & William Ferris, coeditors. Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press, 1989. 1634 pages. See pages 538 and 551-52. ASU APP COLL OVERSIZE: F209 .E53.
Harvard Encyclopedia of American Ethnic Groups . Stephan Thernstrom, Ann Orlov, and Oscar Handlin, eds. Cambridge, Mass.: Belknap Press, 1980. 1076 pages. See pages 126-28. ASU REFERENCE: E184 .A1 H35.
Other Relevant Sources with references to migration from Appalachia:
Essays containing material on Central Appalachian migration to Midwest cities are:
Obermiller, Phil and Michael Maloney. "Living City, Feeling Country: The Current Status and Future Prospects of Urban Appalachia." Appears in Appalachia: Social Context, Past and Present. Bruce Ergood and Bruce Kuhre, eds. 3rd ed. Dubuque, IA: Kendall/Hunt Publishing Co., 1991, c1976. See pages 133 - 138. ASU APP COLL STACKS: HN79 .A13 A788 1991.
Compiler: Stephanie D. Roark, 21 October 1997
