Continuity and Change in an Old Industrial Region

Abstract

ABSTRACTAnalysts have debated the extent to which recent economic changes represent a continuation of earlier patterns or a fundamental shift to a new industrial order. We trace and extend the spatial implications of this debate for a mature industrial region, the Ohio River Valley, part of the American Manufacturing Belt, for the 1980‐90 period. The paper builds on recent research arguing that such regions had a diverse, rather than homogeneous, space‐economy. Empirical findings clearly demonstrate diversity of economic structures, sectorally and spatially, emphasizing both continuity and change in an old industrial region, and the totality of economic activity rather than specific sectors identified with the rise or transformation of industrial capitalism. In terms of change, aggregate trends follow national ones, but do not wash evenly over the Ohio River Valley. Nor do they mirror, when considered at a sub‐regional scale, patterns indicated by de‐industrialization and post‐Fordist transition frameworks. Findings provide implications for elaborating or augmenting these perspectives, and types of research needed to accomplish the task.