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The ‘Black Metropolis’ Revisited

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  • Robert L. Boyd

Abstract

The conventional wisdom on the Black metropolis of the early 20th century holds that urban Black communities in the South lagged far behind their counterparts in the North in terms of providing opportunities for Blacks to enter occupations that were associated with Blacks’ socioeconomic progress. Yet, analyses of census data in the present study offer mixed support for this wisdom. The odds of Black participation in art, show business, public service and professions were, as expected, lower in the urban South. Yet surprisingly, the odds of Black participation in most entrepreneurial ventures were approximately similar in the urban South and urban North. The results imply that the conventional wisdom should be modified to indicate that, at the beginning of the Great Migration, the benefits to Blacks of the large Black communities of northern cities were more cultural and political than economic.

Suggested Citation

  • Robert L. Boyd, 2012. "The ‘Black Metropolis’ Revisited," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 49(4), pages 845-860, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:urbstu:v:49:y:2012:i:4:p:845-860
    DOI: 10.1177/0042098011404937
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Franklin Wilson, 1975. "The ecology of a black business district," The Review of Black Political Economy, Springer;National Economic Association, vol. 5(4), pages 353-375, June.
    2. Amos Hawley, 1972. "Population density and the city," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 9(4), pages 521-529, November.
    3. Ingham, John N., 2003. "Building Businesses, Creating Communities: Residential Segregation and the Growth of African American Business in Southern Cities, 1880–1915," Business History Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 77(4), pages 639-665, January.
    4. Vedder, Richard K. & Gallaway, Lowell, 1992. "Racial Differences in Unemployment in the United States, 1890–1990," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 52(03), pages 696-702, September.
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