Whatever migration patterns evolve, changes in the age structure mean that rural communities in general can expect fairly stable elementary school population, reduced high school population, slower growth in new business and employment, and continued increase in the elderly population. (JHZ)

Data from the Annual Housing Survey indicated that 22% of all employed United States household heads commuted to a county different from that in which they lived in 1975. Commuting was more prevalent among men than among women and slightly higher for whites than for Blacks. Commuting tended to increase until age 25-34 and then to decline after age…