The industrial retardation of southern cities, 1860–1880

Industrial retardation of the South is traced to the southern slave plantation with its vested interest in labor, whereas the Midwest joined the manufacturing belt based on the extensive industrial demands derived from the free family farm with its vested interest in land. The analyses focus on 304 cities in the East, Midwest, and South for the period 1860–1880. Industries in the published censuses were given two-digit SIC codes. The results demonstrate that midwestern cities had significantly larger industrial sectors and different specializations than southern cities by 1860. During the 1860s midwestern cities' industrial growth substantially outpaced southern cities, and differences between the two regions' cities continued to grow up to 1880.