Small Community Trends: A 50-Year Perspective on Social-Economic Change in 13 New York Communities.

This paper is based on a restudy of the 13 New York communities included in the national sample for Brunner's three studies of 140 agricultural villages made in 1924, 1930, and 1936. The paper reports on changes in population 1920&ndash1970, in Dun and Bradstreet business listings 1921&ndash1970, in community boundaries 1936&ndash1974, and in school district boundaries, in 85 community services and facilities and 15 types of voluntary associations 1960&ndash1974, and in industries 1964&ndash1974. The presence of planning and zoning boards in 1974 is noted. All centers were rural by census definition in 1920; 10 still were in 1970. The evidence shows growth and decline, stability and change, depending on the individual community and the time period. Except for a minority of the communities, the evidence suggests that stability and growth prevail over decline. Vitality is generally greater in the noneconomic sectors than in the economic. Differentiation has increased. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]