Brierley, John S.

Prairie Small Town Survival the Challenge of Agro-Manitoba

1990 0-88946-211-9
A study of 58 small towns in Southern Manitoba with conclusions deemed germane for all North American regions whose economies depend on agriculture. Central to this study is the analysis of the underlying characteristics of the varying fortunes of non-metropolitan cultures found in Agro-Manitoba for the 1971-1981 intercensal period. As background for understanding the present state of affairs, the authors first trace the Prairie region of Canada from the opening of the grasslands to commercial wheat farming and the development of rural-based communities from 1870 to 1913, to the consolidation of small towns from 1913 to 1930, to the decline of small-town development during the urbanization that took place from 1913 to the 1970s, to the present revival of small towns, and, finally, to their uncertain futures.