Book Description
This paper examines the changing location patterns of retail, wholesale, and commercial services as revealed in the Census of Merchandising since 1931. After a brief discussion of the data source, the paper looks at the extraordinary rates of growth & change that have occurred in those sectors of the economy and elaborates some hypotheses about possible impacts on the urban system. This is followed by a description of the spatial patterns of growth and the major locational change: the shift of distribution activity down the urban hierarchy. The final section discusses some recent trends and possible directions for future change.