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The functions of Australian towns, revisited

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  • Robert Freestone
  • Peter Murphy
  • Alan Jenner

Abstract

This paper reports an inter‐temporal investigation of urban employment and spatial trends in Australian urbanisation over nearly a half century using city classification methodology. Published in this journal in 1965, Robert Smith's classic paper, ‘The Functions of Australian Towns’, provides the benchmark analysis. Smith used 1954 employment census data to group the then national total of 422 urban places into functional categories which provided a succinct description of the pattern of early postwar urbanisation. The present study revisits (without exactly replicating) Smith's study, employing 1996 data for 741 urban centres. A two‐stage procedure using principal components and cluster analyses identifies 13 functional town groupings which capture both enduring and new patterns of employment distribution across the Australian urban system.

Suggested Citation

  • Robert Freestone & Peter Murphy & Alan Jenner, 2003. "The functions of Australian towns, revisited," Tijdschrift voor Economische en Sociale Geografie, Royal Dutch Geographical Society KNAG, vol. 94(2), pages 188-204, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:tvecsg:v:94:y:2003:i:2:p:188-204
    DOI: 10.1111/1467-9663.00248
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    Cited by:

    1. Karim K Mardaneh, 2016. "Functional specialisation and socio-economic factors in population change: A clustering study in non-metropolitan Australia," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 53(8), pages 1591-1616, June.
    2. Guangzhong Cao & Rongxi Peng & Tao Liu, 2022. "Urban functional transformation in (de)industrializing China: The heterogeneous roles of state and market," Growth and Change, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 53(4), pages 1813-1833, December.
    3. Jerry Courvisanos & Ameeta Jain & Karim K. Mardaneh, 2016. "Economic Resilience of Regions under Crises: A Study of the Australian Economy," Regional Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 50(4), pages 629-643, April.
    4. Andrew Beer & Terry Clower, 2009. "Specialisation and Growth: Evidence from Australia's Regional Cities," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 46(2), pages 369-389, February.

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