Paying Attention to Moving Americans - University …faculty.washington.edu/gregoryj/Gregory_ Paying Attention...cHaPter tWelve Paying Attention to Moving Americans Migration Knowledge

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Paying Attention to Moving Americans

Migration Knowledge in the Age of Internal Migration, 1930s–1970s

James N. Gregory

Two­mass-­market­books­reached­bookstores­in­late­1972­and­early­1973:­A Na-tion of Strangers­by­Vance­Packard,­a­journalist­and­pop­sociologist,­and­The Moving American­by­George­Pierson,­a­historian­at­Yale.­Both­called­attention­to­what­the­authors­considered­very­high­rates­of­geographic­mobility,­echo-ing­a­pattern­of­journalistic­and­academic­literature­that­for­several­decades­had­focused­on­internal­migration,­relocations­of­Americans­across­state­lines­and­from­farms­to­cities­to­suburbs.­Packard,­a­chronicler­of­social­trends,­con-sidered­mobility­a­phenomenon­that­Americans­needed­to­watch­and­worry­about,­as­the­title’s­reference­to­“strangers”­indicates.­Using­terms­like­“rest-less”­and­“uprooted,”­he­argued­that­geographic­mobility­had­the­potential­to­harm­communities,­families,­and­personalities­and­to­produce­loneliness,­dis-orientation,­and­social­fragmentation.1­The­historian­Pierson­celebrated­the­mobility­of­Americans,­emphasized­its­continuity­over­time,­and­argued­that­it­was­part­of­“the­American­character.”­Ocean-­and­mountain-­crossing­pio-neers­had­built­his­America,­and­to­him­geographic­mobility­showed­a­spirit­of­yearning,­ambition,­and­self-­reinvention­that­boded­well­for­the­nation’s­future.2­ Reflecting­two­different­disciplinary­traditions—sociology­and­social­dis-location,­history­and­American­character—these­books­capped­a­long­period­of­public­and­academic­interest­in­moving­Americans.­To­read­them­is­to­re-visit­a­time­when­internal­migration­competed­with­cross-­border­immigration­for­headlines­and­when­multiple­institutions­of­knowledge­production­and­knowledge­circulation­focused­on­the­problem­of­mobility.­The­period­from­the­1930s­to­the­1970s­was­the­golden­age­of­migration­research,­when­public­funds­and­public­interest­fueled­studies­by­sociologists,­demographers,­econo-

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mists,­and­historians;­and­when­ journalists,­novelists,­and­mass­entertain-ment­industries­spread­scholarship’s­results­beyond­campus­walls.­The­inter-face­between­scholars­and­publics­at­that­time­is­worthy­of­our­consideration.­Migration­scholars­today—at­a­moment­when­more­people­around­the­world­are­in­motion­and­living­outside­natal­countries­than­at­perhaps­any­time­in­human­history—seem­less­capable­of­influencing­broad­publics­than­in­the­age­of­internal­migration.­ This­chapter­explores­the­rhythms­of­migration­studies.­It­traces­the­shifts­that­ have­ occurred­ in­ the­ relationship­ between­ producers­ of­ migration­ re-search­and­the­institutions­of­communication­that­can­give­added­social­and­political­significance­to­this­research.­It­will­also­discuss­the­relationship­be-tween­two­of­the­disciplines­that­produce­migration­studies.­Historians­and­social­scientists­have­not­only­differed­in­methods­and­findings­but­also­inter-acted­on­different­terms­with­the­popular­media.­Analyzing­the­differences­can­help­us­think­about­what­might­be­done­to­widen­the­channels­of­public­access­for­current­studies.­Doing­so­is­important,­because­migration­knowl-edge­is­itself­significant­in­the­social­systems­that­condition­and­respond­to­migration.­When­it­circulates­widely,­migration­research­helps­set­the­terms­for­migration­decisions,­migration­receptions,­migration­politics,­and­also­mi-grant­identity­formation.3

The Age of Internal Migration

Migration­ was­ once­ front-­page­ news.­ In­ nearly­ every­ mass­ medium,­ from­newspapers­to­magazines,­ to­radio­and­television,­ to­film­and­fiction,­even­popular­music,­the­topic­of­moving­Americans­captivated­the­public.­The­fic-tion­is­perhaps­best­remembered­today.­Novels­like­The Grapes of Wrath,­Native Son, Invisible Man,­Go Tell It on a Mountain,­The Dollmaker,­and­On the Road­remind­us­of­a­time­when­migration­was­treated­as­a­complex­social­and­per-sonal­issue­and­when­mobility­was­thought­to­be­emblematic­of­some­cen-tral­part­of­the­American­experience.4­The­patterns­of­popularity­show­up­in­the­Readers’ Guide to Periodical Literature,­which­has­been­indexing­magazine­articles­since­the­1890s.­ Figure­ 12.1­ shows­ the­ number­ of­ articles­ indexed­ in­ five-­year­ intervals­under­ two­subject­headings:­U.S.­ immigration/emigration­and­ internal­mi-gration.5­Notice­ the­fluctuating­ interest­ in­ immigration­versus­ internal­mi-gration,­which­follows­reasonably­closely­changes­in­American­immigration­laws­and­migration­patterns.­There­were­few­articles­about­internal­migration­until­the­debates­over­immigration­were­resolved­with­the­passage­of­the­Im-migration­Restriction­Act­of­1924.­The­little­hump­of­articles­on­internal­mi-

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gration­articles­during­the­First­World­War­and­early­1920s­is­ largely­about­black­migration­out­of­ the­South.­But­as­ the­doors­shut­and­the­volume­of­immigration­from­Europe­and­Asia­plummeted,­popular­magazines­shifted­their­focus.­In­the­1930s­domestic­mobility­became­an­important­subject,­with­the­number­of­articles­exceeding­immigration­articles­during­the­ten­years­of­1935­to­1944.­With­the­end­of­the­Second­World­War­a­surge­of­articles­about­war­refugees,­braceros,­and­the­McCarran­Act­temporarily­renewed­interest­in­border-­crossing­migrants,­although­attention­to­internal­migration­also­re-mained­strong­and­became­dominant­again­in­the­1960s­and­1970s.­The­graph­confirms­that­the­half-­century­from­the­1930s­through­the­1970s­was­when­in-ternal­migration­held­the­public’s­attention.­ The­same­period­was­also­the­heyday­of­internal­migration­studies­for­so-cial­scientists.­Figure­12.2­displays­the­number­of­articles­published­in­thirty-­seven­sociology­ journals­catalogued­by­ the­ JSTOR­Consortium.­They­are­di-vided­between­articles­that­appear­to­be­about­immigration­or­emigration­and­those­focused­on­internal­geographic­mobility.6­ Figure­12.3­expresses­these­data­as­a­percentage­of­all­articles­in­these­jour-nals.­It­should­be­emphasized­that­this­database­is­far­from­complete.­It­in-cludes­only­a­selection­of­sociology­journals.­Another­indication­of­the­volume­of­internal­migration­research­by­sociologists,­economists,­and­demographers­is­found­in­the­bibliography­Rural- Urban Migration Research­(1974),­which­lists­1,232­articles­and­books­on­the­subject,­most­of­them­published­between­1955­and­1973.7­ Historians­were­equally­committed­to­ internal­migration­studies.­Figure­

Figure 12.1 Popular­magazines:­Immigration­and­internal­migration­articles­indexed­by­Readers’ Guide,­1900–1984

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Figure 12.2 Sociology­journals:­Immigration­versus­internal­migration­articles,­1900–1999

Figure 12.3 Sociology­journals:­Immigration­and­internal­migration­articles­as­percentage­of­all­articles,­1900–1999

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12.4­is­based­on­thirty-­four­history­journals­catalogued­by­JSTOR.­The­numbers­are­less­reliable­than­in­the­field­of­sociology,­because­historians­often­use­cre-ative­and­idiosyncratic­titles­that­interfere­with­keyword­searches.­Thus­I­may­have­missed­articles­that­would­be­counted­as­being­about­internal­migration.­I­wonder­in­particular­about­the­small­number­of­articles­on­domestic­mobility­themes­indicated­in­figure­12.4­for­the­period­1940–64,­because­it­conflicts­with­the­impression­given­by­the­Harvard Guide to American History,­1954­and­1974­editions.­Also­noteworthy­is­that­the­graph­shows­a­surge­of­historical­writing­about­immigration­starting­in­the­1950s,­well­ahead­of­the­sociologists,­who­do­not­warm­to­that­subject­until­the­1980s.8

Migration Research

Let­us­begin­by­briefly­examining­the­different­kinds­of­research­undertaken­by­social­scientists­and­historians,­before­turning­to­the­interactions­between­the­mass­media­and­academic­migration­research­that­helped­keep­the­issue­before­the­public.­Migration­studies­had­been­a­concern­of­researchers­since­the­late­nineteenth­century,­forming­part­of­the­emerging­fields­of­demogra-phy­and­sociology.­For­American­academics­much­of­the­work­done­before­the­1930s­centered­on­immigration­from­Europe­and­Asia­and­two­forms­of­inter-nal­migration:­migration­from­farms­to­cities;­and­tramping,­or­casual­labor­migration.­The­former­reflected­concerns­about­country­life­and­rural­depopu-

Figure 12.4 History­journals:­Immigration­and­internal­migration­articles,­1900–1999

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lation­and­the­well-­funded­field­of­rural­sociology,­the­latter­an­ancient­fasci-nation­with­tramps­and­fears­of­the­menace­that­they­posed­to­stable­society.­Carleton­Parker’s­The Casual Laborer and Other Essays­(1919)­and­Nels­Ander-son’s­The Hobo: The Sociology of the Homeless Man­(1923)­were­the­most­famous­of­this­generation­of­mobility­studies.9­ Migration­ research­ exploded­ in­ resources­ and­ significance­ during­ the­Great­Depression,­helped­by­public­anxiety­about­transients­looking­for­jobs­and­relief­assistance.­Federal­agencies—notably­the­Department­of­Agricul-ture,­Federal­Emergency­Relief­Administration,­and­Works­Progress­Admin-istration—funded­scores­of­studies­focusing­on­transient­families,­migratory­farm­workers,­the­Dust­Bowl­exodus,­and­other­examples­of­poverty-­induced­labor­ migration.­ But­ scholars­ also­ seized­ the­ opportunity­ to­ think­ more­broadly­about­patterns­of­interstate­mobility­and­to­find­data­and­methods­that­improved­understandings­of­who­moved,­when,­where,­and­why.­C.­War-ren­Thornwaite’s­study­Internal Migration in the United States­(1934)­and­the­follow-­up­Migration and Economic Opportunity­(1936),­with­Carter­Goodrich­as­lead­author,­marked­the­emergence­of­full-­blown,­massively­funded­research­on­national­patterns­of­mobility.­Based­on­work­by­huge­teams­of­researchers­who­gathered­data­from­public­and­private­sources­across­the­country,­they­also­developed­new­statistical­measures­and­new­forms­of­presentation,­in-cluding­maps­with­dots­and­maps­with­arrows.­Another­team,­led­by­Dorothy­Swaine­Thomas­for­the­Social­Science­Research­Council,­expanded­the­search­for­data­and­improved­methods.10­ All­ of­ this­ set­ the­ stage­ for­ changes­ in­ government­ data­ collection:­ first­with­a­revised­questionnaire­for­the­1940­census,­featuring­a­set­of­questions­about­where­people­had­lived­five­years­earlier,­ then­with­the­development­of­Current­Population­Surveys­starting­in­1941.­The­culminating­publication­of­ this­drive­ to­ improve­data­and­map­contemporary­and­historical­migra-tion­ patterns­ may­ have­ been­ Population Distribution and Economic Growth: United States, 1870–1950­ (1957–64),­a­three-­volume­compendium­funded­by­the­Rockefeller­Foundation­and­produced­by­a­team­led­by­Simon­Kuznets­and­Dorothy­Swaine­Thomas.11­ Another­research­direction­focused­on­the­social­and­personal­dimension­of­migration.­This­work­was­grounded­in­theories­of­dislocation­and­assimi-lation­that­sociologists­at­the­University­of­Chicago­had­developed­to­explain­the­adjustment­trajectories­of­immigrants­from­eastern­and­southern­Europe.­Starting­ in­ the­ 1920s­ and­ continuing­ through­ the­ next­ four­ decades,­ soci-ologists­would­ in­effect­draw­ together­ the­figure­of­ the­ immigrant­and­ the­figure­of­ the­ internal­migrant,­applying­Robert­Park’s­concept­of­ the­“mar-ginal­man”­caught­between­two­cultures,­and­the­broader­theory­of­sequential­

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adjustment­that­became­known­as­“race-­relations”­theory.­It­is­important­to­clarify­that­Chicago­race-­relations­theory­was­fundamentally­a­theory­of­mi-gration.­Especially­in­its­early­formulations,­race­and­ethnicity­were­less­sig-nificant­than­the­transition­from­peasant­community­to­complex­urban­en-vironment.­The­peasant,­whether­from­Poland­or­America,­whether­Jewish,­black,­ or­Anglo-­American­ Protestant,­ was­understood­ to­ experience­ a­ trau-matic­set­of­challenges­in­the­city­that­would­take­place­in­group­contexts­and­follow­a­predictable­set­of­stages,­from­conflict­and­social­disorganization­to­social­reorganization­and­eventual­assimilation.12­In­hundreds­of­urban­ad-justment­ studies­ that­ centered­ on­ black­ migrants,­ Appalachian­ and­ other­southern­whites,­and­also­on­northern­whites­who­moved­from­farm­to­city,­social­scientists­from­the­1930s­to­the­1970s­understood­domestic­migration­as­a­dislocating­experience­not­much­different­from­immigration­across­bor-ders­and­national­cultures.­Using­the­concept­of­“uprooting”­and­looking­for­symptoms­of­trauma,­they­collected­evidence­of­“maladjustment”­and­evalu-ated­potentials­for­eventual­assimilation.13­ Historians­were­also­writing­about­moving­Americans,­but­in­different­ways.­For­much­of­the­period­they­did­not­even­use­the­same­terminology—rarely­mentioning­“migrants”­until­ the­1960s,­writing­about­pioneers­and­settlers­instead.­The­one­subgenre­of­historical­literature­that­did­use­the­term­“mi-gration”­shows­just­how­much­the­disciplines­were­at­variance.­When­histo-rians­before­1960­used­the­label­“the­Great­Migration”­in­the­titles­of­books­and­articles,­they­rarely­referred­to­African­Americans­leaving­the­South.­Their­Great­Migrations­ involved­English­people­coming­to­America­ in­ the­seven-teenth­ and­ eighteenth­ centuries­ or­ their­ descendents­ moving­ west­ on­ the­Overland­Trail.14­ The­differing­terminology­reflected­other­disjunctures­between­the­disci-plines.­ Anglo­ Americans­ were­ the­ usual­ migrants­ of­ interest­ to­ historians­throughout­much­of­this­period.­Although­Carl­Wittke­had­added­other­Euro-peans­to­the­field­of­immigration­history­with­We Who Built America­in­1939,­followed­ by­ Marcus­ Lee­ Hanson’s­ The Atlantic Migration­ (1940)­ and­ Oscar­Handlin’s­Boston’s Immigrants­ (1941),­and­although­Carter­G.­Woodson­and­the­Journal of Negro History­had­initiated­a­subgenre­of­writing­by­black­schol-ars­about­black­migration­even­earlier,­neither­of­these­enterprises­registered­strongly­with­mainstream­historians­until­the­1950s.­The­historical­profession­remained­riveted­ to­ the­migration­dramas­of­ the­distant­past,­ the­sagas­of­movement­across­space­that­connected­to­issues­of­American­foundations­and­American­ expansion.­ Explorers,­ settlers,­ and­ colonizers­ who­ moved­ across­the­Atlantic­in­the­seventeenth­and­eighteenth­centuries;­and­frontiersman,­gold­rushers,­land­rushers,­farm­builders,­town­builders,­and­other­westward-­

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moving­(mostly­Anglo-­American)­pioneers­of­the­nineteenth­century—these­were­the­moving­Americans­most­interesting­to­the­historical­profession­until­late­in­the­age­of­internal­migration.­ Yet­the­questions­that­historians­asked­were­broader­than­those­of­social­scientists.­The­historians’­project­was­usually­grounded­in­the­frontier­theory­of­the­turn-­of-­the-­century­historian­Frederick­Jackson­Turner.­Turner’s­thesis­emphasized­a­particular­kind­of­space—the­frontier—as­a­zone­of­continu-ous­migration­and­community­building.­The­existence­of­a­frontier­shaped­American­political­development,­sustaining­opportunity,­individualism,­and­democracy­throughout­the­first­century­of­the­nation’s­history.­For­historians­writing­about­early­American­migration,­settlement­became­the­chief­analytic­concern,­and­it­had­several­dimensions.­As­settlers,­migrants­were­understood­to­have­not­only­a­personal­stake­in­relocation­but­also­a­community-­building­and­society-­building­stake.­Historians­in­effect­followed­their­migrants­fur-ther­than­sociologists­did,­connecting­geographic­movement­to­historical­out-comes­in­a­way­that­the­social­sciences­would­not­do.­ The­Turnerian­agenda­also­meant­that­historians­mostly­employed­a­dif-ferent­tone­and­valuation­scheme.­The­migrants­appearing­in­historical­re-search­endured­hardship­transitions­and­came­out­of­the­experience­not­trau-matized,­as­the­sociologists­worried,­but­reinvented.­They­were­less­apt­to­be­understood­as­victims­of­migration­experiences­and­more­likely­to­be­masters­of­their­own­fate.­As­historians­told­it,­migration­in­earlier­centuries­had­been­an­empowering­experience,­key­to­the­making­of­America.

Journalism and Mass Circulation

Scholars­nowadays­understand­that­the­production­of­an­idea­or­text­is­sepa-rate­from­its­circulation­and­impact,­that­if­a­great­theory­remains­unread­it­is­probably­not­very­great­at­all­in­its­own­time,­or­at­least­that­there­are­differ-ences­between­ideas­that­circulate­widely­and­those­that­do­not.­Journalism,­popular­fiction,­and­the­entertainment­media­are­key­mechanisms­of­circula-tion;­they­are­capable­of­spreading­ideas­both­to­broad­audiences­and­to­influ-ential­elites­and­also­are­often­responsible­for­translating­complex­ideas­into­new­forms,­changing­them­in­the­process.­Journalism­(broadly­defined)­and­academic­research­have­long­been­paired­in­this­way.­Some­of­the­founding­scholars­in­the­fields­of­sociology,­political­science,­and­economics­worked­as­newspapermen,­a­prime­example­being­Robert­Park,­the­leader­of­the­Univer-sity­of­Chicago’s­famous­Sociology­Department.­Park­had­earlier­spent­eleven­years­as­a­newspaper­reporter­and­editor­and,­as­Rolf­Lindner­argues,­his­Chi-

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cago­brand­of­sociology­developed­a­set­of­methods­and­orientations­that­re-flected­a­commitment­to­“urban­reportage.”15­ It­was­a­two-­way­relationship.­Journalists­monitored­key­areas­of­social­sci-ence,­harvesting­compelling­stories­and­issues.­They­in­turn­flagged­some­of­the­issues­in­ways­that­set­agendas­for­researchers.­A­good­example­is­the­cir-culation­that­began­with­Paul­Taylor,­the­labor­economist­at­Berkeley­who­dis-covered­and­named­the­Dust­Bowl­migration.­His­article­in­Survey Graphic,­“Again­ the­ Covered­ Wagon”­ (1935),­ noted­ the­ movement­ into­ California­ of­thousands­of­“drought­refugees”­looking­for­work­in­the­cotton­fields­of­San­Joaquin­Valley.16­Magazines­and­newspapers­jumped­on­the­story,­attracted­by­and­replicating­Taylor’s­dramatically­contrasting­metaphors:­refugee­and­covered-­wagon­pioneer.­That­in­turn­opened­the­door­for­dozens­of­research­projects,­ including­a­massive­one­by­ the­Bureau­of­Agricultural­Economics­that­surveyed­the­children­of­recent­migrants­in­thousands­of­schools­in­Cali-fornia.­Congress­got­into­the­act,­establishing­the­Tolan­Committee­in­1939­to­investigate­“the­Interstate­Migration­of­Destitute­Citizens,”­accompanied­by­more­funding,­more­studies,­more­journalism,­and­one­extraordinary­novel­that­worked­the­tension­between­refugee­and­covered­wagon­into­one­of­the­classics­of­American­literature.­The­road­to­The Grapes of Wrath­had­begun­with­Paul­Taylor­and­gone­back­and­forth­between­the­linked­worlds­of­social­science,­history,­and­journalism.­ While­journalists­in­the­1930s­and­early­1940s­had­interacted­readily­with­social­scientists­studying­the­poverty­migrations­of­the­Depression­and­the­defense­migrations­of­the­war­years,­it­was­not­until­the­1950s­that­other­as-pects­ of­ social-­science-­based­ migration­ research­ began­ to­ move­ out­ of­ the­academy­and­into­journalism­and­popular­discussion.­Before­then­migration­was­almost­always­journalistically­framed­as­a­social­problem,­linked­either­to­ poverty,­ the­ decline­ of­ farming,­ or­ challenging­ impacts­ on­ cities.­ In­ the­1950s­and­1960s­ the­new­demographic­data­helped­ fuel­a­surge­of­popular­interest­in­the­high­rates­of­mobility­among­all­sorts­of­Americans­and­in­the­social­and­psychological­ implications­of­relocation.­We­can­see­the­subject­shift­ in­figure­12.5,­which­shows­ the­changing­distribution­of­articles­cata-logued­under­three­subcategories­of­migration­in­the­Readers’ Guide:­(1)­black­migration,­(2)­migrant­labor,­and­(3)­the­more­general­categories­of­“mobility,”­including­the­subject­terms­“moving”­and­“internal­migration.”­Notice­that­not­until­the­1950s­did­the­general­“mobility”­categories­became­important.­Much­of­what­was­written­in­the­1930s­and­1940s­was­indexed­under­the­label­“migrant­labor”­and­included­articles­on­Okies,­farm­workers,­other­itinerant­workers,­and­the­defense­migrants­of­the­Second­World­War.­ The­ ups­ and­ downs­ of­ “black­ migration”­ articles­ are­ revealing.­ Initially­

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dominating­magazine­publishing­about­ internal­migration­during­the­First­World­War­and­the­early­1920s,­ this­subject­heading­almost­disappears­be-tween­the­1930s­and­the­late­1950s.­This­does­not­mean­that­journalists­had­stopped­ writing­ about­ black­ migrants,­ but­ it­ does­ indicate­ a­ different­ way­of­writing­and­indexing­that­reflects­the­influence­of­sociological­thinking.17­Sociological­research­in­the­1930s­and­1940s­deemphasized­race,­particularly­in­connection­with­migration.­African­Americans­were­understood­to­be­ex-periencing­a­transition­from­peasantry,­as­were­white­farm-­to-­city­migrants.­This­perspective­seems­to­have­influenced­journalism.­Instead­of­writing­di-rectly­about­the­second­Great­Migration­that­began­during­the­Second­World­War­and­had­such­powerful­effects­on­cities­across­the­North­and­West,­maga-zines­ usually­ folded­ black­ migrants­ into­ stories­ about­ “defense­ migrants,”­covering­white­migrants­as­well,­often­in­ways­that­deemphasized­racial­differ-ences.­Typical­headlines­in­the­1940s­include­“Whither­the­Migrants”­(News-week),­“Strangers­in­Town”­(Survey),­and­“Rolling­Tide­of­War­Migrants”­(New York Times Magazine).­It­was­not­until­the­late­1950s,­as­civil­rights­struggles­heated­up,­that­stories­on­black­migration­returned­to­the­magazine­headlines.­Here­are­some­from­1958,­the­last­two­prompted­by­a­short-­lived­segregation-ist­proposal­to­deport­blacks­who­demanded­civil­rights:­“Race­Problem­Moves­North”­ (U.S. News and World Report),­“Far­Flowing­Negro­Tide”­ (Newsweek),­“Senator­Russell­Wants­Negroes­to­Move”­(U.S. News and World Report),­and­“Tickets­for­Negroes?”­(Newsweek).

Figure 12.5 Subthemes­of­articles­on­internal­migration­indexed­by­Readers’ Guide,­1900–1984

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­ A­new­category­of­postwar­journalism­may­be­discerned­from­the­headlines­of­other­articles­from­1958,­indexed­under­the­generic­headings­of­“mobility,”­“moving,”­and­“internal­migration”:

—­Americans­on­the­Move­to­New­Jobs,­New­Places­(Life)—­40­Million­on­the­Move­(American Home)—­Don’t­Move­Until­You­Read­This­(Good Housekeeping)—­If­You­Have­to­Move­(House and Garden)—­Child­in­a­New­Neighborhood­(New York Times Magazine)—­New­Family­in­Town­(McCall’s).

­ This­second­batch­of­articles­reveals­a­new­fascination­with­demographic­numbers­that­in­the­postwar­years­were­widely­reported­in­the­news­media­and­convinced­Americans­that­their­society­has­become­highly­and­uniquely­mobile.­ Second,­ they­ reveal­ an­ interest­ in­ the­ mobility­ of­ “ordinary”­ white­families­and­their­movement­from­cities­to­suburbs­and­from­east­to­west.­Third,­and­most­important,­they­reveal­the­dimension­that­sustained­much­of­the­popular­attention­to­migration­throughout­the­middle­twentieth­century:­a­fascination­with­its­psychological­implications.

The Dislocated American

Migration­studies­attracted­media­attention­in­part­because­of­perceived­so-cial­problems,­in­part­because­of­exciting­new­data,­but­also­in­part­because­of­a­ set­of­exciting­ ideas—theories­ that­were­captivating­ in­ their­ logic­ and­implications.­Among­these­ideas­were­the­social­adjustment­and­social­dis-location­theories­mentioned­earlier,­which­were­part­of­a­larger­fascination­with­the­insights­of­social­psychology.­In­The Romance of American Psychology­Ellen­Herman­explores­how­in­the­decades­following­the­Second­World­War,­psychological­ theory­ and­ psychological­ experts­ “carved­ out­ a­ progressively­larger­sphere­of­social­influence”­that­extended­through­many­academic­disci-plines­and­policy­arenas,­and­that­fundamentally­reshaped­discourse­and­cul-ture,­seeping­“into­virtually­every­facet­of­existence.”18­For­educated­Americans­of­the­postwar­generation,­social­psychology­offered­an­entrancing­theory­of­the­self­and­society—an­under-­the-­hood­glimpse­into­the­social­mechanisms­that­ supposedly­ structured­personal­development­ and­ into­ the­psychologi-cal­mechanisms­that­supposedly­structured­social­problems.­Fascination­with­the­insights­of­social­psychology­animated­any­number­of­public­debates­and­media­crusades­in­the­postwar­period,­including­campaigns­against­racism,­bigotry,­and­the­“authoritarian­personality.”­Migration­was­one­of­the­arenas­

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where­these­debates­and­crusades­were­played­out,­and­an­important­one,­as­journalists­and­novelists­joined­sociologists­and­psychologists­in­understand-ing­migration­as­a­disorienting­process­that­produced­stressful­adjustments­at­a­personal­and­social­level.­ Social­and­psychological­adjustment­theories­had­been­crossing­over­into­migration­journalism­and­popular­literature­for­some­time­by­the­1940s,­show-ing­up­in­the­way­subjects­were­framed­and­in­the­circulation­of­key­terms­like­“uprooted,”­“social­disorganization,”­and­“marginal­man.”­The­popularizers­often­misunderstood­the­theory­and­used­it­selectively­and­in­ways­that­both-ered­the­experts,­and­much­of­what­they­were­borrowing­and­translating­was­considered­out­of­date­by­social­scientists.­It­is­best­to­think­of­the­process­not­as­a­close­translation­of­ideas­but­as­a­mediation­that­transformed­ideas­even­as­it­gave­them­much­wider­circulation­and­potentially­great­potency.­This­circulation­and­mediation­can­be­seen­in­many­of­the­migration­novels­of­the­day,­including­such­classics­as­Richard­Wright’s­Native Son,­in­which­the­author­tried­to­incorporate­migration­theory­of­the­Chicago­sociologists.­His­main­character,­Bigger­Thomas,­ is­a­migrant­disoriented­by­the­transi-tion­from­rural­community­to­bewildering­big­city,­and­doubly­marginalized­because­of­his­ race.­Ralph­Ellison’s­ Invisible Man­ also­ takes­key­constructs­from­migration­and­marginalization­theory­and­may­have­even­owed­its­title­to­Park’s­well-­traveled­concept­of­the­marginal­man.­Other­borrowings­are­evi-dent­in­Go Tell It on a Mountain­by­James­Baldwin­and­The Dollmaker­(1954),­Harriett­Arnow’s­novel­about­a­white­Appalachian­family­struggling­and­fail-ing­in­Detroit.19­ These­books­were­part­of­a­broader­system­of­popularization­that­included­journalism­and­entertainment­media.­We­may­not­recognize­the­finer­points­of­academic­theory­in­the­proliferation­of­comedic­films,­television­situation­comedies,­and­popular­songs­that­focused­on­dislocated­Americans­in­the­era­of­ internal­migration,­many­of­which­used­the­old­trope­of­ the­rube­ in­the­city­to­achieve­their­ laughs.­But­it­ is­no­coincidence­that­some­of­the­most­popular­entertainment­productions­of­the­time­featured­migrants­and­their­adjustment­travails—from­Amos ’n Andy­on­radio­in­the­1930s,­through­The Beverly Hillbillies,­the­most­popular­television­show­of­the­1960s,­to­country­music’s­endless­songs­about­wanderers­and­homesickness.­What­animated­all­of­this­was­a­concern­with­dislocation,­uprooting,­and­being­out­of­place­that­had­been­elevated­out­of­academic­publishing­and­into­public­discourse.­The­moving­American­was­ the­dislocated­American,­engaging­ in­a­complicated­personal­transition.­This­was­the­kernel­of­the­social­theory­that­artists,­jour-nalists,­and­even­television­producers­seized­upon­in­the­great­age­of­migra-tion­writing.­Bigger­Thomas­was­out­of­place,­The­Joads­were­out­of­place.­The

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Real McCoys­and­The Beverly Hillbillies­were­out­of­place.­And­all­of­this­out-­of-­placeness­was­thought­to­be­of­great­consequence.20­ Vance­Packard­brought­the­dislocated­American­conversation­to­a­point­of­culminating­clarity­when­he­published­A Nation of Strangers­in­1972.­Through-out­his­career­Packard­profited­from­the­interaction­between­academia­and­journalism.­ The­ most­ famous­ of­ the­ tribe­ of­ journalists­ who­ read,­ reinter-preted,­and­popularized­the­work­of­social­scientists,­Packard­was­emblem-atic­ of­ the­ way­ ideas­ moved­ across­ the­ academic­ barrier.­ His­ biographer­Daniel­Horowitz­details­the­tensions­in­the­relationship.­As­he­cranked­out­a­sequence­of­bestselling­books­of­social­criticism­starting­with­The Hidden Persuaders­(1957),­Packard­faced­harsh­reviews­from­academics­who­accused­him­ of­ sensationalizing,­ oversimplifying,­ and­ otherwise­ misusing­ research­and­who­resented­his­ability­to­reach­audiences­far­larger­than­their­own.21­Packard’s­books­fed­the­popular­fascination­with­social­psychology­even­as­he­plundered­select­bits­of­academic­research.­Whether­he­was­writing­about­the­anxious­middle­class­(The Status Seekers),­the­culture­of­affluence­and­cor-porate­ planned­ obsolescence­ (The Waste Makers),­ or­ threats­ to­ privacy­ and­individuality­posed­by­government­and­corporate­surveillance­(The Naked So-ciety),­his­books­climbed­the­bestseller­lists­by­identifying­disturbing­trends­and­issues­in­contemporary­life­and­delivering­a­mix­of­sharp­criticism­and­what­readers­took­to­be­up-­to-­date­research.­ In­1968­Packard­turned­his­attention­to­recent­reports­and­data­on­internal­migration,­especially­the­statistic­that­close­to­forty­million­Americans,­19­per-cent­of­the­population,­changed­residence­each­year.­Four­years­later­A Nation of Strangers­appeared­with­the­fanfare­that­usually­greeted­his­books­and­im-mediately­made­the­nonfiction­bestseller­list­of­the­New York Times,­reaching­the­number­six­spot­and­remaining­in­the­top­ten­for­eight­weeks.22­The­book­focused­on­what­Packard­took­to­be­historically­high­rates­of­mobility­while­working­ with­ notions­ of­ the­ dislocated­ American­ that­ he­ culled­ selectively­from­social­adjustment­and­mental­health­studies.­Packard’s­argument­was­that­excess­mobility,­often­in­service­to­corporations­that­casually­shift­jobs­and­people­from­place­to­place,­disrupts­lives­and­communities,­creating­a­rootless­and­disoriented­people,­a­nation­of­strangers.­ While­friendly­articles­in­the­Ladies’ Home Journal­and­some­other­popu-lar­venues­helped­to­promote­the­book,­sociologists­hammered­A Nation of Strangers­ and­ its­ author.23­ The­ American Journal of Sociology­ invited­ three­scholars­to­evaluate­the­book­in­a­special­symposium.­Amos­Hawley,­Claude­Fischer,­and­Brian­Berry­were­unanimous­in­dismissing­its­conclusions,­its­re-search,­and­especially­its­core­logic,­pointing­out­that­there­was­no­reason­to­

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believe­that­rates­of­mobility­were­higher­than­they­had­been­in­the­past,­nor­that­“because­we­are­mobile­.­.­.­we­are­a­‘nation­of­strangers.’”­In­voicing­these­criticisms­they­implicitly­distanced­themselves­from­the­body­of­scholarly­lit-erature­that­Packard­and­other­journalists­had­been­highlighting.­He­had­bor-rowed­his­thesis­of­the­dislocated­American­from­decades­of­sociological­re-search,­albeit­while­taking­it­out­of­context,­twisting­some­of­its­meanings,­and­milking­its­alarmist­potentials—all­of­which­were­standard­consequences­of­the­commingling­of­journalism­and­social­science.24­ George­Pierson’s­The Moving American­achieved­nowhere­near­the­sales­of­Packard’s­book­but­suffered­the­same­sort­of­criticism­at­the­hands­of­aca-demic­reviewers,­who­found­ it­underresearched,­ inconsistent­ in­argument,­and­out­of­date.­Pierson,­the­Yale­historian,­had­been­working­on­this­book­for­years,­probably­decades.­The Moving American,­clearly­intended­for­a­gen-eral­audience,­is­written­in­a­breezy­style­and­consists­of­discrete­essays­that­do­not­readily­cohere,­some­of­them­barely­revised­versions­of­articles­that­Pierson­had­been­publishing­since­the­early­1940s.­He­shares­Packard’s­view­that­excess­mobility­can­be­dangerous.­But­the­Turnerian­American­dominates­as­he­moves­back­into­history,­showing­the­migrant­as­a­pioneer,­a­builder,­the­quintessential­American.­Rowland­Berthoff­and­William­Gottesman­were­harsh­in­their­reviews,­ridiculing­Pierson’s­attempt­to­fashion­a­new­theory­of­migration­(which­he­called­the­“M-­factor”)­based­on­principles­introduced­by­the­demographers­E.­G.­Ravenstein­and­Everett­Lee.­The­reviewers­were­equally­impatient­with­his­research,­noting­that­he­ignored­the­work­of­so-cial­historians­who­for­more­than­a­decade­had­been­revising­understandings­of­eighteenth-­and­nineteenth-­century­mobility­and­community­patterns­and­who­no­longer­embraced­the­overly­psychologized­and­monolithic­concept­of­“American­character.”25­ Both­books­stand­as­end-­of-­an-­era­markers,­highlighting­and­summarizing­perspectives­that­were­still­circulating­outside­the­academy­but­were­no­longer­fashionable­inside.­They­also­mark­the­end­of­a­relationship­that­enabled­some­of­the­research­to­reach­a­broader­public,­helping­a­generation­of­Americans­to­see­mobility­as­a­subject­of­interest­and­of­some­importance.

Losing Public Attention

Since­the­1970s­public­awareness­of­moving­Americans­has­faded.­News­media­and­other­popular­venues­have­been­less­eager­than­before­to­circulate­infor-mation­about­mobility.­We­no­longer­see­magazine­stories­like­those­that­ran­in­1958­about­moving­day,­strangers­in­town,­or­millions­of­Americans­chang-ing­residence­or­leaving­cities.­In­part­this­reflects­changes­in­migration­pat-

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terns.­Americans­have­become­less­mobile­since­the­early­1970s.­Each­year­from­1948,­when­the­Census­Bureau­began­its­Current­Population­Survey,­until­1970,­roughly­19­percent­of­Americans­would­report­a­change­of­residence­in­the­previous­ twelve­months.­Rates­ then­began­a­slow­decline,­ falling­ to­an­average­of­17­percent­moving­per­year­in­the­1980s,­16­percent­in­the­1990s,­and­14­percent­since­2000,­dropping­to­11.9­percent­in­the­recession­year­of­2008.26­ While­domestic­mobility­has­slowed,­journalists­have­refocused­their­at-tention­on­the­dramatically­increased­volume­of­cross-­border­immigration.­The­Immigration­Reform­Act­of­1965­was­almost­ten­years­old­before­maga-zines­began­to­catch­on.­The­“boat­people,”­refugees­from­Vietnam,­Cuba,­and­Haiti,­were­often­in­the­headlines­in­the­1970s,­but­concern­about­illegal­im-migration­and­curiosity­about­the­new­demography­of­immigration,­largely­from­Asian­and­Latin­American­countries,­soon­followed.­A­set­of­headlines­from­U.S. News and World Report­suggests­the­scope­of­magazine­coverage­in­the­1970s:

—­Now­a­Growing­Surge­of­Immigrants­from­Asia­(1973)—­How­Millions­of­Illegal­Aliens­Sneak­into­U.S.­(1974)—­Rising­Tide­of­Immigrants­to­U.S.­(1975)—­Latest­Wave­of­Immigrants­Brings­New­Problems­to­U.S.­(1976)—­U.S.­Opens­Its­Doors­to­the­Floating­Refugees”­(1977)—­Still­a­Land­of­Refuge”­(1979)—­Now­It’s­Haiti’s­Boat­People­Coming­in­a­Flood­(1979).

­ Then­ in­ the­ 1980s­ media­ attention­ soared.­ Readers’ Guide Retrospective­identifies­almost­as­many­magazine­articles­on­immigration­in­the­first­three­years­of­the­1980s­(131)­as­had­been­printed­in­the­two­previous­decades­com-bined­(160).27­ Journalists­ did­ continue­ to­ write­ about­ certain­ internal­ migration­ se-quences,­ especially­ those­ involving­ rearrangements­ of­ political­ power­ and­race.­The­Sunbelt­migration­became­a­story­in­the­late­1970s­and­gained­im-portance­ through­ the­ 1980s­ and­ early­ 1990s,­ as­ the­ South­ reversed­ its­ his-toric­role­as­a­population-­sending­region­and­started­to­pull­millions­of­jobs­and­people­out­of­the­Northeast­and­Midwest.­Gentrification­migrations­also­earned­headlines­in­the­same­period,­as­whites­moved­back­into­the­big­cities,­raising­property­values,­transforming­urban­spaces,­and­changing­balances­of­power­within­the­urban­electorate.­There­was­some­attention­to­the­move-ment­of­black­families,­focusing­both­on­their­relocation­from­central­cities­into­the­suburbs­and­also­on­the­return­migration­of­African­Americans­to­the­South,­which­journalists­highlighted­as­one­of­the­ironic­effects­of­the­Sunbelt­surge.28

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­ But­there­have­been­noticeable­differences­in­the­tone­as­well­as­the­volume­of­internal­migration­journalism­since­the­mid-­1970s.­Population­movements­within­the­United­States­are­reported­without­much­sense­of­urgency,­mostly­as­curious­phenomena­that­readers­may­find­interesting.­When­significance­attaches­to­these­demographic­changes,­it­is­primarily­on­the­level­of­politics­and­the­economy.­The­Sunbelt­shift­is­taken­to­be­important­for­the­regions­that­were­losing­and­gaining­jobs,­people,­and­voting­power.­What­has­been­missing­is­the­tense­personal­and­social­dimension­that­animated­journalism­during­the­age­of­internal­migration.­The­issues­of­adjustment­are­no­longer­at­the­center­or­often­even­part­of­the­story.­The­moving­American­is­no­longer­the­dislocated­American.­Moving­is­now­taken­to­be­only­mildly­interesting­on­both­a­personal­and­social­level.­People­move.­So­what?­ The­“so­what”­in­earlier­decades­had­come­from­sociological­and­psycho-logical­theory,­and­its­absence­from­current­journalism­reveals­an­important­shift­in­American­intellectual­life.­The­passing­of­the­age­of­big­sociological­theory­and­particularly­social­psychology­theory­has­registered­in­American­journalism­since­the­1970s.­It­has­changed­the­way­Americans­understand­mi-gration­and­much­more.­Academics­now­work­either­with­smaller­ theories­that­lack­the­power­to­interest­journalists­or­are­so­complex­and­unwieldy­(as­with­poststructuralism­of­various­kinds)­ that­ reporters­ ignore­ them.­Social­science­research­still­finds­its­way­into­newspapers­and­magazines,­but­jour-nalists­seem­more­interested­in­new­data­than­in­the­analysis­that­scholars­develop.­Especially­since­the­1980s,­it­seems­that­social­research­finds­fewer­outlets­in­the­popular­media­and­that­the­walls­between­academic­knowledge­and­public­knowledge­have­grown­thicker.29­ Does­it­matter­that­migration­research­no­long­seems­to­circulate­and­that­important­ geographic­ mobility­ patterns­ remain­ unacknowledged­ in­ major­media,­and­thus­are­much­less­visible­to­broader­publics­than­they­would­have­been­thirty­or­forty­years­ago?­It­certainly­matters­to­those­who­do­migration­research­and­to­funding­agencies.­But­it­also­has­consequences­for­moving­Americans­and­for­all­Americans.­ Immigration­politics­have­almost­certainly­been­affected­by­the­new­isola-tion­of­academic­research.­Journalists­have­paid­scant­attention­to­the­studies­of­new­immigrants­produced­by­sociologists,­demographers,­and­anthropolo-gists.­ Newspapers­ will­ occasionally­ quote­ economists­ who­ debate­ whether­immigration­produces­economic­growth­or­drains­public­resources,­but­any-thing­ more­ complex­ is­ ignored.­ This­ includes­ work­ like­ Douglass­ Massey’s­well-­documented­finding­that­militarized­borders­have­an­unintended­con-sequence,­ turning­temporary­ illegal­ immigrants­ into­permanent­ illegal­ im-migrants­who­are­afraid­to­go­home­because­they­will­not­be­able­to­return.­

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Despite­the­obvious­relevance­to­current­policy­debates,­the­mass­media­have­failed­to­expose­and­explore­this­and­other­research.30­ On­the­other­hand,­the­lowered­lighting­that­now­accompanies­some­mi-grations­may­have­positive­consequences.­Many­of­the­newer­patterns­of­inter-nal­migration­would­have­attracted­journalistic­attention,­and­with­it­height-ened­controversy,­a­generation­ago.­The­black­families­who­have­been­moving­steadily­out­of­central­cities­and­into­what­had­been­largely­white­neighbor-hoods;­the­Latino­families­moving­into­what­had­been­black­neighborhoods­as­well­as­white­neighborhoods;­the­gay­and­lesbian­redistributions—all­of­these­fundamental­ rearrangements­of­cities­and­suburbs­have­been­ taking­place­without­the­kind­of­media­attention­that­in­the­mid-­twentieth­century­might­have­ramped­up­anxieties.­ The­ media­ spotlight­ is­ dimmer­ now;­ journalists­ are­ writing­ less­ about­domestic­migration,­and­this­means­that­most­Americans­are­thinking­less­about­who­is­moving­and­what­moving­means.­The­mobility­itself­continues,­at­rates­that­are­still­high­in­comparison­with­those­in­many­other­societies.­In­most­years­close­to­forty­million­Americans­change­residences,­moving­short­distances­or­long­distances,­sometimes­radically­shifting­personal­contexts,­sometimes­ rearranging­ neighborhoods­ or­ larger­ communities­ where­ they­settle.­That­we­are­no­longer­paying­attention­to­internal­migration­does­not­alter­the­basic­patterns­of­movement­and­settlement,­but­it­does­change­some­of­the­meanings­and­interactions.

Notes

­ 1­ Vance­ Packard,­ A Nation of Strangers­ (New­ York:­ McKay,­ 1972).­ On­ Packard­ see­Daniel­Horowitz,­Vance Packard and American Social Criticism­(Chapel­Hill:­Univer-sity­of­North­Carolina­Press,­1994).

­ 2­ George­W.­Pierson,­The Moving American­(New­York:­Alfred­A.­Knopf,­1973).­ 3­ See­for­more­detail­James­N.­Gregory,­The Southern Diaspora: How the Great Migra-

tions of Black and White Southerners Transformed America­(Chapel­Hill:­University­of­North­Carolina­Press,­2005);­Alex­Morrow,­“Studying­the­‘Problem’­of­Migrant­Labor:­Social­Science,­Transient­Workers,­and­the­Depression,”­unpublished­paper,­Pacific­Coast­Branch­American­Historical­Association­meeting,­August­28,­2006;­Carol­H.­Weiss­and­Eleanor­Singer,­Reporting of Social Science in the National Media­ (New­York:­Russell­Sage,­1988);­Alice­O’Connor,­Poverty Knowledge: Social Science, Social

Policy, and the Poor in Twentieth- Century America­(Princeton:­Princeton­University­Press,­2001).

­ 4­ Farah­Jasmine­Griffin,­“Who Set You Flowin’”: The African- American Migration Nar-

rative­ (New­ York:­ Oxford­ University­ Press,­ 1995);­ Lawrence­ R.­ Rodgers,­ Canaan

Bound: The African- American Great Migration Novel­ (Urbana:­University­of­Illinois­

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Press,­1997);­Erin­Royston­Battat,­“Literature,­Social­Science,­and­the­Development­of­American­Migration­Narratives­in­the­Depression­Era”­Literature Compass­4,­no.­3­(2007),­539–51.

­ 5­ Compiled­from­H. W. Wilson Databases: Reader’s Guide Retrospective­(April­28,­2006).­The­internal­migration­category­is­a­combination­of­the­following­subject­headings:­“Migration,­ internal,”­“migrant­ labor,”­“blacks/migration,”­“moving,”­“social­mo-bility.”­I­edited­the­results,­eliminating­scholarly­journals­and­articles­that­did­not­appear­to­be­related­to­geographic­mobility­in­the­United­States.­The­database­ends­in­1982.­To­maintain­the­five-­year­interval­I­have­extrapolated­the­period­1980–84.

­ 6­ While­the­Readers’ Guide­indexes­articles­by­subject­headings,­I­am­relying­on­key-words­that­appear­in­titles­or­abstracts­in­the­JSTOR Archive:­versions­of­“immigrant,”­“emigrant,”­“immigration,”­“emigration,”­“migrant,”­“migration,”­“mobility,”­“ad-justment,”­“migratory,”­“floating,”­“resettlement.”­I­have­edited­the­output,­some-times­moving­items­from­the­immigration­to­internal­migration­or­vice­versa­after­reading­the­abstract.

­ 7­ Daniel­O.­Price­and­Melanie­M.­Sikes,­Rural- Urban Migration Research in the United

States: An Annotated Bibliography and Synthesis­(Washington:­National­Institute­of­Child­Health­and­Human­Development,­1974).

­ 8­ JSTOR­catalogues­158­history­journals.­I­included­only­those­that­focus­substantially­on­U.S.­history.­Some­important­journals­are­not­part­of­JSTOR,­including­the­Journal

of American Ethnic History,­which­began­in­1975,­and­Journal of Social History,­which­began­in­1967.­Keywords­used­were­the­same­as­above,­with­the­addition­of­variants­of­“settler”­and­“pioneer.”

­ 9­ Examining­ this­ literature­ are­ Frank­ Tobias­ Higbie,­ Indispensable Outcasts: Hobo

Workers and Community in the American Midwest, 1880–1930­(Urbana:­University­of­Illinois­Press,­2003);­Morrow,­“Studying­the­‘Problem’­of­Migrant­Labor”;­Kenneth­Kusmer,­Down and Out on the Road: The Homeless in American History­(New­York:­Oxford­University­Press,­2002).

­10­ Jennifer­Platt, A History of Sociological Research Methods in America, 1920–1960­(New­York:­Cambridge­University­Press,­1996),­142–54;­Dorothy­Swaine­Thomas,­Research

Memorandum on Migration Differentials­(New­York:­Social­Science­Research­Council,­1938).

­11­ Population Redistribution and Economic Growth: United States, 1870–1950,­prepared­under­the­direction­of­Simon­Kuznets­and­Dorothy­Swaine­Thomas­(Philadelphia:­American­Philosophical­Society,­1957–64);­Platt,­A History of Sociological Research

Methods in America,­150–58;­Margo­J.­Anderson,­The American Census: A Social His-

tory­(New­Haven:­Yale­University­Press,­1988).­12­ Seminal­works­include­W.­I.­Thomas­and­Florian­Znaniecki,­The Polish Peasant in

Europe and America­(New­York:­Alfred­A.­Knopf,­1927);­and­Robert­Ezra­Park,­“Human­Migration­and­the­Marginal­Man,”­Race and Culture­(Glencoe,­Ill.:­Free­Press,­1950).­On­the­influence­see­Fred­H.­Matthews,­Quest for an American Sociology: Robert Park

and the Chicago School­(Montreal:­McGill-­Queens­University­Press,­1977).

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­13­ More­ than­ two­ hundred­ urban­ adjustment­ studies­ are­ listed­ in­ Price­ and­ Sikes,­Rural- Urban Migration Research.

­14­ Examples­from­WorldCat­(oclc):­Nellis­Maynard­Crouse,­Causes of the Great Mi-

gration­(1932);­Edwin­Clarence­Guillet,­The Great Migration: The Atlantic Crossing by

Sailing- Ship since 1770­(1937);­Edmond­S.­Morgan,­“Provisions­for­the­Great­Migra-tion,”­New England Quarterly,­March­1939;­Philip­Parrish­II,­The Great Migration:1842­(1943);­Allen­French,­Charles I and the Puritan Upheaval: A Study of the Causes of the

Great Migration­(1955).­The­only­book­in­WorldCat­to­use­the­label­in­reference­to­African­Americans­before­1960­is­William­Morgan­Markoe,­A Great Migration­(1924).­Black­journalists­like­Markoe­began­using­the­term­in­the­1920s.­By­the­1940s­it­was­appearing­in­the­social­science­literature­in­reference­to­African­American­migra-tion.

­15­ Rolf­Lindner,­The Reportage of Urban Culture: Robert Park and the Chicago School,­trans­Adrian­Morris­(New­York:­Cambridge­University­Press,­1996).

­16­ See­also­James­N.­Gregory,­American Exodus: The Dust Bowl Migration and Okie Cul-

ture in California­(New­York:­Oxford­University­Press,­1989),­80–113.­17­ Gregory,­The Southern Diaspora,­59–79.­18­ Ellen­Herman,­The Romance of American Psychology: Political Culture in the Age of Ex-

perts­(Berkeley:­University­of­California­Press,­1995),­2–3.­19­ Carla­Cappetti,­Writing Chicago: Modernism, Ethnography, and the Novel­(New­York:­

Columbia­University­Press,­1993).­20­ For­more­detail­on­comedic­representations­of­hillbillies­and­black­southerners­see­

Gregory,­The Southern Diaspora,­54–79;­Anthony­Hawkins,­Hillbilly: A Cultural His-

tory of an American Icon­(New­York:­Oxford­University­Press,­2004).­21­ Horowitz,­Vance Packard,­esp.­185–95.­22­ Adult­ New York Times­ bestseller­ lists­ for­ 1972,­ Hawes­ Publications,­ http://www

.hawes.com­(July­24,­2009).­23­ “A­Nation­of­Strangers,”­Ladies’ Home Journal,­September­1972,­104.­24­ American Journal of Sociology­79­(July­1973),­165–75.­25­ Rowland­Berthoff­review:­Journal of American History­60­(December­1973),­767–68;­

William­Gottesman­review:­American Historical Review­79,­no.­1­(1974),­213–14.­26­ “Current­Population­Survey:­Annual­Geographical­Mobility­Rates,­by­Type­of­Move-

ment,­ 1947–2008,”­ U.S.­ Bureau­ of­ the­ Census,­ http://www.census.gov­ (August­ 8,­2009).­On­historic­migration­rates­see­Larry­E.­Long,­Migration and Residential Mo-

bility in the United States­(New­York:­Russell­Sage,­1988).­27­ Compiled­from­H. W. Wilson Databases: Reader’s Guide Retrospective­(April­28,­2006).­28­ I­have­tracked­these­subjects­in­the­annual­editions­of­Reader’s Guide to Periodical

Literature.­29­ Weiss­and­Singer,­Reporting of Social Science in the National Media,­175–207,­did­not­

find­major­changes­in­the­volume­of­news­reporting­of­social­science­research­be-tween­1970­and­1982.­Other­reports­stress­declining­policy­access­without­looking­at­journalism:­David­L.­Featherman­and­Maris­A.­Vinovskis,­eds.,­Social Science and

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Policy- making: A Search for Relevance in the Twentieth Century­(Ann­Arbor:­University­of­Michigan­Press,­2001);­Charles­E.­Lindblom­and­David­K.­Cohen,­Usable Knowl-

edge: Social Science and Social Problem Solving­(New­Haven:­Yale­University­Press,­1979);­Andrew­Rich,­Think Tanks, Public Policy, and the Politics of Expertise­(New­York:­Cambridge­University­Press,­2004).

­30­ Massey­has­reported­this­study­in­numerous­publications,­most­comprehensively­in­an­anthology­edited­with­Jorge­Durand,­Crossing the Border: Research from the Mexi-

can Migration Project­(New­York:­Russell­Sage,­2004).

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