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The Reconstruction of the American Urban Landscape in the Twentieth Century

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Author Info
Sukkoo Kim
Abstract

One of the most important representations of an urban spatial structure is its density. Indeed, an urban area is defined as a densely populated place with a sizeable number of inhabitants. Yet, despite the fact that the defining element of an urban area is its density, few scholars have systematically examined the long-run changes in the densities of economic activities in these areas. This paper documents the historical changes in population and employment densities in U.S. cities and metropolitan areas and explores the causes of their rise and decline between the late nineteenth and the twentieth centuries.

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Paper provided by National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc in its series NBER Working Papers with number 8857.

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Date of creation: Mar 2002
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Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:8857

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Find related papers by JEL classification:
R11 - Urban, Rural, and Regional Economics - - General Regional Economics - - - Analysis of Growth, Development, and Changes
N70 - Economic History - - Economic History: Transport, International and Domestic Trade, Energy, and Other Services - - - General, International, or Comparative

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Cited by:
(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. Allen Scott & Michael Storper, 2003. "Regions, Globalization, Development," Regional Studies, Taylor and Francis Journals, vol. 37(6-7), pages 549-578, August. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  2. David Cutler & Grant Miller, 2005. "Water, Water, Everywhere: Municipal Finance and Water Supply in American Cities," NBER Working Papers 11096, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  3. Michael Storper & Anthony J. Venables, 2003. "Buzz: Face-to-Face Contact and the Urban Economy," CEP Discussion Papers dp0598, Centre for Economic Performance, LSE. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
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