Author(s):
Siyoung Park* - Western Illinois University
Jongnam Choi - Western Illinois University
Abstract:
The study presents the effect of the location of military bases on the distribution of Korean populations in rural America. Conventionally most immigrant groups tend to concentrate in the metropolitan areas. Korean Americans are, however, often found in small towns as well. This unusual Korean distribution is associated with Korean brides who married American military servicemen. There are two types of Korean brides who settled in rural America: ones who have settled in their husbands rural hometowns, and the others who live in the current military base towns throughout the country. These Korean brides were married to American GIs while their husbands were on duty in Korea. Often they have mixed blood children represented in 2000 Census' new category of more than one race. During the last two decades, there have been major military base closures which have had a pronounced affect on the distribution of Korean population in rural America. The counties with declining Korean American populations in the 2000 Census were clearly represented by Military base closures. The same counties also have A higher proportion of Koreans who marked more than one category of race. The data of the present study is from the U.S. Population Census 1980, 1990 and 2000, and the Department of Defense Base locations and their closures.
