Chapter 20 Quiz: The Great Migration Out — Why Millions Left the Mountains
Multiple Choice
1. Approximately how many people left the Appalachian region between 1940 and 1970?
a) 500,000 b) 1 million c) 3 million d) 10 million
2. The single most important cause of Appalachian out-migration was:
a) Natural disasters that destroyed mountain communities b) Federal relocation programs that moved families to cities c) The mechanization of coal mining, which eliminated hundreds of thousands of jobs d) Improved highways that made commuting to cities possible
3. U.S. Route 23, known as the "Hillbilly Highway," connected:
a) Asheville, North Carolina to Atlanta, Georgia b) Eastern Kentucky to Detroit, Michigan (via Ohio) c) Charleston, West Virginia to Washington, D.C. d) Eastern Tennessee to Nashville, Tennessee
4. The "continuous mining machine" transformed the coal industry by:
a) Making underground mining completely safe b) Allowing a small number of operators to produce the same tonnage that previously required hundreds of hand-loading miners c) Enabling mining operations at previously unreachable depths d) Requiring more workers per mine to operate safely
5. Which city became the largest urban Appalachian community in the United States?
a) Detroit, Michigan b) Chicago, Illinois c) Cincinnati, Ohio d) Baltimore, Maryland
6. The term "chain migration" in the context of Appalachian out-migration refers to:
a) The practice of chaining migrants to factory equipment b) The process by which one person's successful move to a city created a pathway for others from the same community to follow c) The chain of command in the auto industry d) The linked railway system that connected Appalachian towns
7. Over-the-Rhine in Cincinnati was significant because:
a) It was the wealthiest neighborhood in the city b) It became one of the densest concentrations of Appalachian migrants in any American city c) It was the first neighborhood in the U.S. to be officially designated as Appalachian d) It was where the UMWA established its national headquarters
8. The Young Patriots Organization in Chicago's Uptown neighborhood was notable for:
a) Opposing all forms of political activism b) Forming an alliance with the Black Panther Party and the Young Lords in the original Rainbow Coalition c) Successfully electing an Appalachian mayor of Chicago d) Establishing the first country music radio station in the North
9. McDowell County, West Virginia's population fell from approximately 98,887 in 1950 to approximately 18,000 by 2020, a decline of more than:
a) 25 percent b) 50 percent c) 65 percent d) 80 percent
10. The Urban Appalachian Council, founded in Cincinnati in 1974, was significant because:
a) It was a federal government agency created to relocate mountain families b) It successfully advocated for recognition of Appalachians as a protected group in the city's anti-discrimination ordinance c) It was the first organization to study Appalachian geology d) It provided free transportation to mountain families returning home
Short Answer
11. Explain the difference between "push factors" and "pull factors" in the context of Appalachian out-migration. Give at least two examples of each from the chapter.
12. How did Appalachian migrants maintain connections to their home communities while living in cities? Describe at least three specific practices or patterns discussed in the chapter.
13. What forms of discrimination did Appalachian migrants face in the cities? How was this discrimination similar to and different from the discrimination faced by other migrant groups?
14. The chapter describes out-migration as an "emotional catastrophe" as well as an economic event. What evidence supports this characterization? How did the emotional dimension of migration manifest in the culture of the migrants?
Essay
15. The Appalachian out-migration produced winners and losers — or, more accurately, it distributed costs and benefits unevenly across different groups and places. Write a well-organized essay (500-750 words) that analyzes:
- Who benefited from the migration (migrants who found better-paying work? The industrial cities that gained workers? The companies that employed them?)
- Who bore the costs (the mountain communities that lost their young? The migrants who experienced discrimination? The urban neighborhoods that became overcrowded?)
- Whether the net effect of the migration was positive or negative — and for whom
- What the Appalachian migration teaches us about the human costs of economic dislocation
16. Compare the Appalachian out-migration to the African American Great Migration (the movement of millions of Black Americans from the rural South to Northern and Western cities between approximately 1910 and 1970). In a brief essay (400-600 words), address:
- What push and pull factors were similar? What was different?
- What forms of discrimination did each group face in the receiving cities?
- How did each group build community institutions in the cities?
- Why has the Great Migration received significantly more historical attention than the Appalachian migration?
Map Exercise
17. On a blank map of the eastern United States, complete the following:
a) Mark the major sending regions: eastern Kentucky coalfields, southern West Virginia coalfields, eastern Tennessee b) Mark the major receiving cities: Detroit, Cincinnati, Chicago, Baltimore, Dayton, Columbus c) Draw the major migration corridors connecting sending regions to receiving cities d) Label Route 23 and indicate its significance as the "Hillbilly Highway" e) In each receiving city, note one specific neighborhood associated with Appalachian settlement