ABSTRACT
Communities were initially located near natural resources such as fertile land, mineral resources, ports, or along routes by which the products of land and water were transported to urban markets. These towns became known by their primary economic base, for example, "railroad" communities, "mining" communities, or "farming" communities, or "fishing" villages. A number of factors have reduced the impact of natural resources on the economies of rural communities. Owners of these resources have found it profitable to invest in technologies which have increased productivity and thereby decreased the number of workers needed in timber, mining, farming, and fishing. Rural communities support a wide range of economic activities. Nearly half of all nonmetropolitan counties still rely upon natural resources, including agriculture, forestry, energy, non-energy mining, and fishing. Those that rely upon a single resource, however, are often unstable. Many of these communities face population decline or continued boom-and-bust cycles.
