Inter-generational Social Mobility of Tylerville Natives

Margaret M. Crawler

January 5, 1965

Social Stratification

1%.Pak
 Outline

Introduction V

A. Informal entry into 13713111113

B. Formal introduction to Wlerville
C. Transition to purpose of this paper
II. Momesis
A. Stated
B. Method established to test it
III. Individual families studied in turn
A.
B
Characteristics shown
. Associated with the hypothesis
IV. Conclusion
 Inter-gmeratiml Social Mobility of Leading l‘ylemue Natives
Ch September 1, 1927 this observer, age 20 years entered;
, the little
A

hamlet of Tyler-ville, crowded into the rear seat of a 1921; Chevrolet

touflngcarnexttoauickerbasketholdingthesixweeksold son ofthe
local minister and his wife.
Up Rev. Arthur
front, was the Ieslie, who vmsrnaxupulating the steering
wheel andgas
pedalmin
the pmper relationship so as to
minimize the danger of an attack or violent shuddering to which the car was
notoriously susceptible if not cleverly maneuvered, and at the same time

pointing proudly to each farmhouse passed to emlain the relationship of its

residents to the village commmity church.
Next to th‘. Leslie was his wife Priscilla, finally happy to be re-
months since
turning to these parishioners since it was but fifteen
§_h_e_

had been the minister of this little clrmrch, having completed her college

and Semdnary courses two years ahead of her husband-to-be.

The writer of this paper, being the observer mentioned, has always
considered
it a valuable experience to have shared the insights and concerns
of this alert, well-educated couple real students of philosophy
who were

and psychology as well as theologr. Needless to say, they were not rural

ministers long, but wherever they have gone, Tylewille has always remained
special in their affections, and strong ties have been kept with Tylerville
friends.
At this time, 1927, dairy fanning was the occupation of nearly every
residmt of the area, the hamlet itself being inhabited by those farmers
The the aforesaid
too old to be active any more. three exceptions were

ministers, the one general store owner, and the local cheesemaker.
 Ihe I'lezatding citizens" of
this comunity, as detendned by this author
as an observer participant for thirty-five years, and by the “av. Mr. leslie
and other present day "oldsters “, were not really these last three "outsiders“,
but famers whose family backgrounds were all of sturdy pioneer stick, and
nearly all were long-term form more with an income in 1927 quite uniform.
But even as Warner and Lust found in their stuchr of Yerkes City, that

after they "had placed individuals in one of the (several classes and completed
the study of inter-class relations,
it still remained to explain
"'1
the not
inconsidereble variations in behavior of members of a given class, so I
have sought to find out why acme individuals have become mobile while others

in the same class and generation have remained non-mobile.

01'
course it is obvious that if an individual in this leading class in
Tylerville were to become upwardly mobile, he would have to change his
occupation and residence, for as Lipsett and Bendix said in their study of
social mobility, "person‘ from rural trees and mall towns who disabove
their parents' status are most in a large cityo-while their
likely to do so

less mobile neighbors remain in the smell committee}?

And even authors in their inter-generational study found
as these same

a definite relationship between the family’s position at the time the sons
sons-3,
were in the fomative years and the future mobility of these so I
am also interested in studying this parental influence.
But most of by Gerhard
all, I was intrigued by the article written
Lenskih
in which he stated that another dimension is important in measuring
attitudes and behavior. ibis is a. consistency measurement which is not
vertical, but when a number of parallel vertical hierarchies are imperfectly
correlated with one another, so thst an individual my rank high in sane
vertical dimensions but low in others, then his degree of consistency is low
and this is called low crystallization. 0n the other hand, if all vertical
hierarchies are rated equally low, or equally high, then he has a high degree
of crystallisation. His hypothesis was that attitudes and behavior differ
significantly according to the degree of status crystallization when status
differences are controlled. H e further suggested that more exploration
should be done on the "relationship of status crystallisation to variations
in other behavior and personality defelopment.“
So that the hypotheses I shall testfhere, is that the degree of
it is,
a family's social class crystallization affects the social mobility of the
next generation.
To do this, I have chosen six fahdlies of 'lylerville
are generally
who

agreed to be leading families, and have controlled status differences by this

fact that all were of the same occupation (dairy taming) and the same general
economic level in 1927. I will try to show the reasons for some of then
becoming mobile, while others were not mobile, many of them still residing
contentedly in the area.
First of all, it is neclssary to establish the vertical dimensions I
will use to measure the consistency of an individual's placement in these
hierarchies, or his status crystallization.
@321”
It has been stated that "the smaller the commnity and the the
detenuned
‘

social class, the likely is that an individual's rank is

more 11-.

by his personal attributes."5 With this in mind, I have reached beyond the

easily measured attributes such as education and income, and sought to also
measure the personal quality of interests and values ad evidenced by
participation in social organizations. Since the only two organizations
operating vitally in Tylervillc in 1927 were the local Cozmunity Church and
 participation. I will try to find if the degree of consistency in these
rankings seems to influence the future behavior or the children, e’peoially
mobility behavior.
Among the early settlers was the Dodge family, and there were three
descendants of this family living in Tylerville in 1927, as they still do

today. Frank, Merton and Edward Dodge were brothers, industrious in their
farming, moderately successful in raising standard crops, careful in buying
machinery and household necessities. Each had a good, substantial franc
house and born , an equally conservative and practical wife, and life was
good. ‘lhey attended church functions, at least the most outstanding ones,
and faithfully participated in every Grange meeting, having been members
since childhood. moi:- interest was only local, however, for they were much
too practical to go gallivanting off to a. Pomona Grange meeting in another
town.
Frank‘s son, Lance, is a good, lcindheerted yomg former, owner of a.

good home near his parents, and has gradually taken over the operation of
the family farm.
Merton's son, Hervey, also has a place of his own, and he, likewise,
helps his father.
Edward's son is living nearby, too, having march/seed one qhthe good

fame in the area.

crystallized family because
'

So you can a. l'xigdflo,r

see that these Dodgesa re
all through the generations they have remained consistently conservative
in their education, consumption standsrds, participation 1.ansz life of
the community and their high prestige has remained constant, for they would
truly be described as the “salt of the earth.“ here has been little
mobility of the third generation, for this generation has been notoriously
imminious.
But during the this observer has watched
last twenty years, one member

of the fourth generation of this family, raised in pwerty by his grandmother

who had early separated from the Ferris family, grow and develop his talent
as a violinist, encouraged by his grandmother to participate in church and
Grange, merging at last in his Senior year in the State University, an
acknowledged musician. Undoubtedly
accomplished and
it was the sacrifice
by the grandmother, and the motivation caused by low social class
crystallization! which is responsible for his word mobility.
The Melton: who lived in Tylerville in 1927, and whose ancestors were

one of the first residents, were college educated and interested deeply in
organizatirgfs féééively. They
social participatim, leading both were high

in ccnswnption statue, too, and

it is apparent to me that this consistently
high crystallizationis the reason their childrenand grandchildren made no
great strides in mobility, but continued the pettem of their family through
the generations.
3 out the
last two
families observed are noteworthy because of emotely
low status crystallization and the mobility of subsequent generations has
been startling.
Take any Lemon
for instance. In 1927 he and his wife were definitely
leaders of Tylerville, but not because of his ancestry. 0n the contrary,
Guy's background was rather weak and he had been legally adopted by a tam
family in a near-by township. His wife was descended from pioneers in the

g
North Gmmtry near 'Iylerville their pocition an a leading fondly of
lylcrville was clearly because of their keen activity and interest in the
local organizations. They became officers on the county level also and
naturally their children's contacts were widened too. Soon their consunption
standards had helped them achieve high rating, and in spite of low education
Mr. Luzon had the perception to discover that more could be achieved by
developing a business associated with farming; so as he became a cattle
dealer his status rose even higher. His daughter attended college, became

a teacher, and this carried her to another town, larger, but near by. Soon

Mr. lemon studied and became a. real estate agent, using his wide influence
and reputation to facilitate the sale of many fame. Needless to say, he
too was mobile, as well as his daughter, and befom he died he was a. well—

known leader of the wholearea.

his mobility I feel was grently induced by the unequal ranking in the
vertical hierarchies I mentioned. 'me lemons were low in family prestige
at first, and low in education. At the some time they ranked very high in
consumption standards and group pwticipation. The result was noteworthy
achievement and upward mobility. At the present thne one granddaughter is
taking her War College year in France, getting a. very liberal educational
background for a future oereer in lam or education. The other granddaughter
hopes to became a medical doctor.
’lhe
sixth family, lmown best of all to this observer, is the Homer
family. 'here were three branches of the original sittiers, on this day in
1927, in Tylerville, But not many years before, in the previous generation,
there had been two country doctors in the family, both practising in 'Iylorvillol
Another of that generation had migrated to New York City as a capable teacher,
and was presently engaged actively in politics, ardently proolsinfing the
good points of Al own for Governor, even though this amateur politician
was a very elderly and frail woman. So the flamers presently residing in
'l‘ylerville were secure in their status of a well established family and
were content to "ride along" contentedly, taldng part easily in local
activities, having cmmmption standards approved at the time, an adequate
though not gou’standing education. This part of the family now living there
had, therefore, a highly crystallized status, not especially motivated
toward further mobility.
The children of these Romero were contented, well balanced, children
as one would sweet them to be. But one of them, Karl Ramer, met this
observer and from then on contentment disappeared rather fast!
the depression of 1930 was at hand. There was no security for anyone.
But smehow Karl Homer's family grew up on the old farm. 'Iheir consumption
standards were ranked very, very low. Everything that could be made
or grown

it home was made and grown. Education of the father was low, education of
the mother had been stopped half-way through college. Family prestige was

still high because the flamers were an old elteblished family, and because,
after all, Mrs. Ramsr had been discovered in the local ministers' family!
Added to this, the family's participation in church and Grange was on a

higher than local level, extending even past county into state activities.

w
So here was the inconsistency of no money
at all, and .very values and
interests. If W twpothesis is correct, then this low status crystallization
is the reason for the high mobility of the next generation. At any rate,
the four childrenfound a way, without much family financial help, to achieve
educations. One son, a clergyman, has an administrative position in his
denomination. H
is brother specialises in Space Engineering. Cine
sister
teaches first and second graders, and the other teaches Junior High English,
and all four definitely no longer call lylerville their home.
It seem to me highly probable from observing these representative
leading natives of 1y1erville and their descendants, that the degree of
 10

status crystallization of a family must have some bearing on the inmate

mobility of the children, at least when one of the vertical hierarchies
considered is social participation.
 Footnotes

lwamer and hunt, 313 Status System (Y ale University

Press, 19142), pp 3,h.
g; 5 Modern Comanitz,
21.113331;
audit Social Mobilitz in Industrial Societz, (University
and B 01’
California Press, 1965)"‘"§I‘,

W
p 6. ""
3mm, 1) 183.
haemard E. Imam, “Status Non-Vertical Dimension,
crystalliaamm A "
a reaearch paper on file in library.
5I.'5.pse'l'.
and B endfiz, p 275.
6Wamer and hunt, gm; Social Life
Press, 19111); P 27. 9; 3 Modern Comm, (Isle University

71113361;
and Fendix, p 273.
81m, p 157.
 B ibliograplw

Ienski, Gerhard E., Status fatallizatioh: .4; Non—Vertical Dimension ‘

§UGC
(a research paper in pers flies in Library.
some). Mobiligz: .19. Industrial
Lipset, Seymour Martin and Bendix, Reward,3.953.
3005-932: University of California Press,
Warner, W. 1:3.qu and 141111;,
Paul 3., "Yankee
City Series"
Vol. I 1113
University of California, 191::
Social 9; 5
(2th
’
Modern

gmw
e

HEW ammmig, University of Califozmit,

‘

Vol. ma
1.9m. ......... " """"
'