Over-Industrialization as a Limitation to Economic Development in Rural Appalachian Counties

OVER-INDUSTRIALIZATION AS A LIMITATION TO ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN RURAL APPALACHIAN COUNTIES Neal G. Lineback ° Economic depression has long been recognized as a standard condition in most isolated rural counties of the southern Appalachian Mountains. Pro­ grams have been initiated locally, regionally, and nationally to raise the standard of living within these areas. Poverty, ignorance, and out-migration are the principal characteristics for which solutions are sought. The time required for attaining an affluent level of living has become important to mountain people, especially the young, and they are leaving their birthplaces for areas that offer more opportunities for achieving prosperity. Residents of the region have generally associated poor economic conditions with size­ able out-migration and are highly concerned about breaking this cycle through the adoption of new economic programs. Industrialization offers one of the quickest methods of providing jobs and increasing income levels. However, opportunities for improved economic conditions in the mountain areas through industrialization are limited by such factors as rough terrain, poor transportation, lack of skills and raw materials and markets, and a relatively small and scattered population. Unless nontypical factors intercede, such as the local availability of some mineral or a situation involving subsidization, any manufacturing industry locating in such economically depressed areas will of necessity probably be of the low-wage, low-skill type. Industries requiring medium- to high-skill labor would be forced to train local labor, an expensive and long-range pro­ position. Another factor which may affect any industry locating in depressed areas where the population densities are relatively low is that any appreciable increase in industrial jobs may result in rapid employment saturation. Even if the laborshed encompasses a very large area, the number of potential workers remains limited. In addition, available evidence indicates that where there has been a trend toward out-migration, no amount of increase in low-wage industrialization can successfully reverse the trend and increase the size of the labor force. This study examines the problems and results of an intensive effort to change the economy of a rural Appalachian county in northwestern North Carolina from a low-income, subsistence agricultural base to a dependence upon manufacturing. *Mr. Lineback is a doctoral candidate in geography at the University of Tennessee, Knox­ ville. Th e paper was accepted for publication in April 1968. 2 T h e S o u t h e a s t e r n G e o g r a p h e r J K Y . r S V I R G I N I A B ris to l Danville ------------- ---------------------------# ------------Johnson Citjr @ ^ _ W'/nston-Salem 0 Knoxville T E N N . N O R T H C A R O L I N A ^A s h e v ille s ------------------------- ® L ............ ^ s C \ C h a r/o tte o so J / T O W N S H I P S : 4 ' G l o d ' C r e e k 0 5 10 5 . P i n e y C r e e k 1 1 1 — 1 1 . 1 " 1 6. P r a t h e r s C r e e k m ' 1' 1 7. W h i t e h e a d m___________________________________________________________ F ig u re 1 CHARACTERISTICS OF ALLEGHANY COUNTY. Alleghany County is situated in northwestern North Carolina immediately west of the Blue Ridge Front, 50 miles northwest of Winston-Salem, and 50 miles east of Bristol, Tennessee (Fig. 1). Rugged hill country is interspersed with stream valleys. A few large areas are suitable for commercial farming, but much of the cleared land is used for pasture. Transportation facilities of the type usually consid­ ered desirable for industry are almost totally lacking. No railroads or airports Vol. VIII, 1968 3 F ig u re 2. O ld U.' S. h igh w a y 21 crosses a stre am in G lad e V a lle y on the above co ncrete b rid g e. T h is b rid g e is p ro ba b ly of better q u a lity th a n m ost of the re m a in d e r...