e-WV: The West Virginia Encyclopedia Online

Migration

Sign in or create a free account to curate your search content.

Excerpt about 20th-century migration, from West Virginia: A Film History (1:04)

Ronald Eller: "I remember the day when my father packed up the family car and put all the kids in the car and the furniture on top of the car and joined the trek of others along Route 21 heading towards "The Promised Land" in Ohio because there were no jobs to be had at home. It was a very difficult decision for young men and women of that generation to make; to have to leave the land that had become part of them."

Narrator: As their communities disappeared, many families drifted north to cities such as Detroit and Cincinnati in search of work. Blacks left the state at three times the rate Whites did.

  • Buy Video
  • Series Title: N/A
  • Company: West Virginia Humanities Council
  • Filmmaker: Mark Samels
  • Distributor: N/A
  • Format: N/A