• Abstract and Figures
• Public Full-text

Clemson University TigerPrints All Dissertations Dissertations 5-2012 THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CHANGES IN BUSINESS STRUCTURE AND TOURISM GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT IN CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA, 1899-1999 Katharine Sparks Clemson University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://tigerprints.clemson.edu/all_dissertations Part of the Recreation, Parks and Tourism Administration Commons Recommended Citation Sparks, Katharine, "THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CHANGES IN BUSINESS STRUCTURE AND TOURISM GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT IN CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA, 1899-1999" (2012). All Dissertations. 956. https://tigerprints.clemson.edu/all_dissertations/956 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Dissertations at TigerPrints. It has been accepted for inclusion in All Dissertations by an authorized administrator of TigerPrints. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CHANGES IN BUSINESS STRUCTURE AND TOURISM GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT IN CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA, 1899-1999 A Dissertation Presented to the Graduate School of Clemson University In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy Parks Recreation and Tourism Management by Katharine Mary Sparks May 2012 Accepted by: Dr. William Norman, Committee Chair Dr. Paul Anderson Dr. Mickey Lauria Dr. Francis McGuire Dr. Barry Nocks Dr. Gregory Ramshaw ABSTRACT The dissertation investigates how a medium-sized U.S. city (Charleston, SC) transformed itself from an old depressed port, with a predominance of manufacturing industries, to one that is a popular international tourist destination. The research seeks to answer the following questions: What urban processes have been most influential in shaping the tourism product? Can Butler’s Tourism Area Life Cycle (TALC) model be used as a basis for measuring tourism growth in the Tourism Business District of a U.S. city? Is the change in a city’s business structure related to the growth of the tourism industry? What measures have to be taken by the public and private sectors to develop and maintain the tourist product in the Tourism Business District? What other factors are important to the growth and success of a destination? The TALC model is examined by looking at the changes in business structure over a hundred year period from 1899-1999. “Snapshots” are taken every twenty years using business data taken from city street directories. For tourism businesses (accommodations, restaurants, antique stores and gift shops), the snapshots are taken every five years to obtain a more accurate picture of growth and change. The analysis also includes graphs of tourist visitation rates and expenditures and maps of the central area of Charleston. An historical analysis helps to explain why some of the changes in Charleston’s business took place and how tourism became the leading industry in the area. Topics ii such as events, advertising, beautification, facility development and tourism management give a picture of the tourism development process in the community. The study concludes that while the city may go through cycles of business growth, change and decline, tourism is not always affected by those cycles. Exogenous factors like recessions, gas shortages and price rises, have far more impact on tourism. Butler’s model is suitable for a description of tourism development but there needs to be more focus on the process and evolution of tourism management and planning as tools for maintaining the urban tourism product and in a multifunctional city some better measures of estimating tourist numbers. iii DEDICATION I would like to dedicate this dissertation to my family Peter, Anna, Jonathan, Paul, Tracie, Emma, Ethan, Michael, Stephen and Gerald. iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank my committee for all the encouragement and support they have given me through the long process of preparing this dissertation. I would particularly like to thank Drs. Bill Norman and Fran Maguire my two major advisors, who encouraged me to finish this work. I am grateful to Drs. Paul Anderson, Mickey Lauria, Barry Nocks, and Gregory Ramshaw for lending their interdisciplinary expertise and advice. I would like to thank other faculty members who helped me along the way: Drs. Larry Gahan, Gina McClellan, Greg Hawkins and Wes Burnett. I am grateful to the staff of the Charleston County Public Library, especially those in the South Carolina History Room and the librarians in charge of microfilms. I would like to thank Sharon Bennett of the Charleston Museum, the staff of the Charleston Department of Urban Planning and Development, the South Carolina Historical Society, the Charleston Library Society, and the College of Charleston who helped me find materials used in the research for this dissertation. I would also like to thank the staff at Delorme, a mapping software company who gave me permission to use Delorme’s copyrighted maps as base maps for my spatial data. I would like to thank my children Anna and Jonathan who patiently waited through the years for me to graduate and were often my inspiration. I am grateful to my friends who never gave up on me and made me feel confident that I could complete the degree. I would also like to thank Dr. Frank Garland, my department head at TriCounty Technical College, who was very patient while I finished v my writing. Above all, I would like to thank my husband Peter who stood by me through all the years of study, never failing to encourage me and making sure I met my deadlines, and for being one of the few people who have read this entire dissertation. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Page TITLE PAGE ....................................................................................................................... i ABSTRACT ........................................................................................................................ ii DEDICATION ................................................................................................................... iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................................ v LIST OF TABLES ............................................................................................................ xii LIST OF FIGURES ......................................................................................................... xiii CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................... 1 Background ...................................................................................................................... 1 Rationale for Study .......................................................................................................... 3 Conceptual Background .................................................................................................. 5 Problem Statement ........................................................................................................... 7 Research Questions ......................................................................................................... 8 What urban processes have been most influential in shaping the tourism product? ....... 8 The Case Study ................................................................................................................ 8 Assumptions and Scope of the Project .......................................................................... 10 Methodology .................................................................................................................. 10 Definitions of Terms ...................................................................................................... 12 Dissertation Chapter Synopsis ....................................................................................... 13 CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW ........................................................................... 17 Introduction ................................................................................................................... 17 vii Urban Tourism Study Approaches ................................................................................ 18 Tourist Districts ............................................................................................................. 21 The Tourism Area Life Cycle (TALC) Model .............................................................. 38 CHAPTER 3 RESEARCH METHODS ......................................................................... 74 The Charleston Tourism Business District .................................................................... 76 Data Sources .................................................................................................................. 78 Databases ....................................................................................................................... 82 Data Analysis ................................................................................................................. 85 Historic Narrative .......................................................................................................... 86 Maps, Diagrams and Tabulations .................................................................................. 87 CHAPTER 4 CHANGES IN BUSINESS STRUCTURE IN THE TBD 1899-1999 .... 88 Business Structure and Change in the TBD 1899-1999 (2-digit SIC level). ................. 88 Business Structure and Change in the TBD 1899-1999 (6-digit

Load more

  390

Copy Link