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Rural America Archives

Agricultural Outlook, FoodReview, and Rural America have all been replaced by Amber Waves. Rural America ceased publication with the January 2003 issue (Vol. 17, No. 4).

You can access pdf versions of Rural America below. The listing below also includes the predecessors to Rural America—RDP (Rural Development Perspectives) and RCaT (Rural Conditions and Trends).


Past issues are in Adobe Acrobat Reader 4.0 PDF format. You can download and get help using the Adobe Acrobat Reader to view and print them.

Volume 17, No. 4Feature Articles:"Understanding Rural Population Loss," "Nonmetro Recreation Counties: Their Identification and Rapid Growth," "Federal Funding in the Delta," "Federal Funding in Appalachia and Its Three Subregions," "Can Rural Employment Benefit From Changing Labor Skills in U.S. Processed Food Trade?," "Economic Impact of Water/Sewer Facilities on Rural and Urban Communities," "Resource Conservation and Development Program Reaches a Milestone," "Who Owns the Land? Agricultural Land Ownership by Race/Ethnicity," "How Does Growing U.S.-China Trade Affect Rural America?,"
"Farewell Rural America," "Migration: Nonmetro Migration Continues Downward Trend," "Rural Poverty: Rural Poverty at Record Low in 2000," "Jobs and Earnings: Rural Earnings Up in 2000, But Much Less Than Urban Earnings," "New Magazine article."

Volume 17, No. 3Feature Articles:"The Older Population in 21st Century Rural America," "Recent Trends in Older Population Change and Migration for Nonmetro Areas, 1970-2000," "Federal Funding in Nonmetro Elderly Counties," "The Graying Farm Sector: Legacy of Off-Farm Migration," "Small Rural Communities' Quest for Safe Drinking Water," "Rural Housing Prices Grew Rapidly in the 1990s," "Socioeconomic Impacts of the Conservation Reserve Program in North Dakota," "Farm Labor: Hired Farmworkers' Earnings Increased in 2001 But Still Trail Most Occupations," "Federal Funds in Rural America: Payments Vary by Region and Type of County."

Volume 17, No. 2Feature Articles:"Wealth and Income Contribute Jointly to the Economic Well-Being of Farm Operator Households," "Income Inequality in America: Nonmetro Income Levels Lower Than Metro, But Income Inequality Did Not Increase as Fast," "Population Change in the Midwest: Nonmetro Population Growth Lags Metro Increase," "Rural Health Issues for the Older Population," "Implications of Medicare Restructuring for Rural Areas."

Volume 17, No. 1Feature Articles: "Electric Market Restructuring: Issues for Rural America," Small Town Development in China: A 21st Century Challenge," "Economic Strain and Community Concerns in Three Meatpacking Communities," and "Expenditures on Children by Rural Families."

Volume 16, No. 4Feature Articles:"Transportation in Rural America: Issues for the 21st Century," "The Nation's Inland Waterway System and Rural America," "Residence and Farm Experience Influence Perception of Agriculture: A Survey of North Central Residents," "Rural Community Response to Closure or Downsizing of a Major Employer."

Volume 16, No. 3Feature Articles: "Reforming Welfare: Implications for Rural America," "Nonmetro Labor Markets in the Era of Welfare Reform," "Welfare Reforms and Employment of Single Mothers: Are Rural Areas Keeping Pace?" "Poverty and Welfare Among Rural Female-Headed Families: Before and After PRWORA," and "Is There A Rural Disadvantage in Reducing Welfare and Food Stamp Participation in Mississippi and South Carolina."

Volume 16, No. 2Feature Articles: "Rural Community Colleges: Creating Institutional Hybrids for the New Economy," "College and Community in Partnership: The Furniture College at Letterfrack," "Rural Colleges as Catalysts for Community Change: The RCCI Experience," and "Innovation and Replication: Can Community College Successes Be Repeated?"

Volume 16, No. 1Feature Articles: "Financial Well-Being of Small Farm Households Depends on the Health of Rural Economies," "Value-Added Agriculture Policies Across the 50 States," "Nontraditional Sources of Venture Capital for Rural America," "Socioeconomic Impacts of Agricultural Processing Plants," and "Regional Workforce Needs and Training: The Case of Northeast Minnesota/Northeast Wisconsin."

Volume 15, No. 4Feature Articles: "New South, Old Challenges," "Migrants in the Rural South Choose Urban and Natural Amenities," "New Economy Manufacturing Meets Old Economy Education Policies in the Rural South," "Educated Workforce, Quality Jobs Still Elusive Goals in the Rural South," "Most Persistently Poor Rural Counties in the South Remained Poor in 1995," "Factors Affecting High Child Poverty in the Rural South," and "Welfare Reform: Remedy for Persistent Poverty in the Rural South?"

Volume 15, No. 3Feature Articles: "Rural America at the Turn of the Century: One Analyst's Perspective," "Immigrants to the Nothern Plains: Survey Results from Nebraska and North Dakota," "How Important Is Airport Access for Rural Business?," "Older Americans' Patterns of Driving and Using Other Transportation," "Developing a Safety Net for Farm Households," "Rural Banks and the Federal Home Loan Bank System," and "USDA's Self-Help Loan Program Provides Unique Opportunities for Home Ownership."

Volume 15, No. 2Feature Articles: "Housing Poverty in Rural Areas Greater for Racial and Ethnic Minorities," "Direct Loans Open Doors to Rural Homeownership," "Local Housing Policy: The Small-Town Myth and Economic Development," "Skilled Metro Workers Get Highest Payoffs for Using a Computer at Work," and "Less-Educated Workers Face Limited Opportunities To Move Up to Good Jobs."

Volume 15, No. 1Feature Articles: "Rural Consumer Markets," "Thinking About Rural Manufacturing: A Brief History," "Federal Funds in the Black Belt," "Child Poverty in Nonmetro Areas in the 1990's," and "Using Microenterprise Programs in the Rural United States."

Volume 14, No. 3Feature Articles: "Strategic Planning for Telecommunications Rural Communities," "Innovations in the Delivery of Health Care Services to Rural Communities: Telemedicine and Limited-Service Hospitals," "Telecommunications Access for Rural Americans With Disabilities," "Growth of the Oldest Old Population and Future Implications for Rural Areas," "Are Workers in the Rural South Ready for the Future?," and Rural Issues in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland Common to United States,"

Volume 14, No. 2Feature Articles: "Migrants Settling Far and Wide in the Rural West," "Amenities Increasingly Draw People to the Rural West," "Jobs Follow People in the Rural Rocky Mountain West," "Migrants to Oregon in the 1990's: Working Age, Near-Retirees, and Retirees Make Different Destination Choices," "Quality of Life, Nontraditional Income, and Economic Growth: New Development Opportunities for the Rural West," "Employment Growth in the Rural West From 1985 to 1995 Outpaced the Nation," "Wildlife Conservation and Economic Development in the West," "Finding Common Ground on Western Lands," and "Water Markets: Implications for Rural Areas of the West."

Volume 14, No. 1Feature Articles: "Increasing the Minimum Wage: Implications for Rural Poverty and Employment," "Choosing To Work Off-Farm," "Tobacco Communities Facing Change," "Financial Markets Serve Rural Areas Reasonably Well," "Federal Funding's Unique Role in Appalachia," and "Nonmetro Displaced Workers Face Less Hardship Than Metro Displaced Workers."

Volume 13, No. 3Feature Articles: "The Continuing Population Rebound in Nonmetro America," "Racial and Spatial Equity in Welfare Programs: Interstate and Intercounty Differences in Welfare Spending," "Rural Poor Have Less Access to Supermarkets, Large Grocery Stores," "Local Government Financial Capacity and the Growing Importance of State Aid," "Do Rural Youth Attain Their Educational Goals?", "Impact of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 for Rural Areas," and "Multi-Agency Service Teams: A New Approach in Maine To Deliver Technical Assistance to Rural Manufacturers."

Volume 13, No. 2Feature Articles: "Poverty of Older Women Across the Rural-Urban Continuum," "Rural Communities and Military Base Closings," "Rail Freight Consolidation and Rural America," "Rural Manufacturers in the Export Market," "Employment in Small Towns: Microbusinesses, Part-Time Work, and Lack of Benefits Characterize Iowa Firms," "Migration, Residential Mobility, and Poverty in Rural Pennsylvania."

Volume 13, No. 1Feature Articles: "Sustaining the Great Plains," "Agriculture and New Agricultural Policies in the Great Plains," "Population Change in the Great Plains: A History of Prolonged Decline," "Net Migration in the Great Plains Increasingly Linked to Natural Amenities and Suburbanization," "Can Manufacturing Reverse Rural Great Plains Depopulation?," "Retail/Wholesale Trade Employment Directly Related to Population Change in the Nonmetro Great Plains," "Which Federal Programs Are Most Important for the Great Plains?," "What Do Nonemployers Contribute to Retail and Service Opportunities in the Great Plains?"

Volume 12, No. 3Feature Articles: "Overcoming Persistent Poverty and Sinking Into It: Income Trends in Persistent-Poverty and Other High-Poverty Counties, 1989-94," "Rural Labor Markets Often Lead Urban Markets in Recessions and Expansions," "Rural Industry Clusters Raise Local Earnings," "Commuting and the Economic Functions of Small Towns and Places," "Rural Areas in the New Telecommunications Era," "Industrial Uses of Agricultural Products Such as Crambe Play a Role in Rural Community Development," "Sustaining a Rural Black Farming Community in the South: A Portrait of Brooks Farm, Mississippi"

Volume 12, No. 2Feature Articles: "Manufacturing and the Midwest Rural Economy: Recent Trends and Implications for the Future," "When Rural Communities Lose Passenger Rail Service," "Direct Farm Marketing as a Rural Development Tool," "Why U.S. Agriculture and Rural Areas Have a Stake in Small Farms"

Volume 12, No. 1Feature Articles: "The Value of Rural America," "The Value of Rural Life in American Culture," "Corridors of Value: Rural Land in Rural Life," "Why Americans Value Rural Life," and "Rural America as a Symbol of American Values"

Volume 11, No. 3Feature Articles: "Lone Eagles and High Fliers in Rural Producer Services," "Computer Use by Rural Workers is Rapidly Increasing," "Communities May Lose Military Retirees Along With Their Bases," "Minimum Wage Increase Could Raise Many Rural Workers' Wages," and "Census Tracts More Precisely Define Rural Populations and Areas"

Volume 11, No. 2Feature Articles: "State Rural Development Councils Are Creating Public-Private Partnerships," "Rural America's Transportation Network: Issues for the 1990's," "Deadwood, South Dakota Gambling, Historic Preservation, and Economic Revitalization," "Rural Prisons: An Update," "Retired Farm Operators: Who Are They?" and "Who's Vulnerable to Federal Budget Cuts?"

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Updated date: July 15, 2009