NCAA Division I
Conferences -- FCS conferences
Table:
Conference

Nickname

Founded

Football Members

Sports

Headquarters

Big Sky Conference

Big Sky

1963

12

16

Ogden, Utah

Big South Conference

Big South

1983

10

19

Charlotte, North Carolina

Colonial Athletic Association

CAA

1979

10

21

Richmond, Virginia

Ivy League +

1954

8

33

Princeton, New Jersey

Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference ++

MEAC

1970

13

16

Norfolk, Virginia

Missouri Valley Football Conference

MVFC

1982

10

1

St. Louis, Missouri

Northeast Conference

NEC

1981

10

22

Somerset, New Jersey

Ohio Valley Conference

OVC

1948

12

19

Brentwood, Tennessee

Patriot League

1986

10

24

Center Valley, Pennsylvania

Pioneer Football League

PFL

1991

11

1

St. Louis, Missouri

Southern Conference

SoCon

1921

10

20

Spartanburg, South Carolina

Southland Conference

Southland

1963

11

17

Frisco, Texas

Southwestern Athletic Conference %

SWAC

1920

10

18

Birmingham, Alabama

Taking into account the provided table along with the context paragraphs listed at the end.

Answer the following question: Where is the headquarters for the conference who was renamed in 1985 when it added championships in other sports ? Output only the correct answer as {"answer": "YOUR ANSWER"}. Avoid adding external knowledge.

The Big Sky Conference is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the NCAA 's Division I , with football competing in the Football Championship Subdivision . Member institutions are located in the western United States in the nine states of Arizona , California , Colorado , Idaho , Montana , Oregon , Utah , and Washington . Four affiliate members each participate in one sport . Two schools from California are football-only participants , and two schools from the Northeast participate only in men 's golf .
Ogden /ˈɒɡdən/ is a city and the county seat of Weber County , Utah , United States , approximately 10 miles ( 16 km ) east of the Great Salt Lake and 40 miles ( 64 km ) north of Salt Lake City . The population was 87,325 in 2018 , according to the US Census Bureau , making it Utah 's 7th largest city . The city served as a major railway hub through much of its history , and still handles a great deal of freight rail traffic which makes it a convenient location for manufacturing and commerce . Ogden is also known for its many historic buildings , proximity to the Wasatch Mountains , and as the location of Weber State University . Ogden is a principal city of the Ogden-Clearfield , Utah Metropolitan Statistical Area ( MSA ) , which includes all of Weber , Morgan , Davis , and Box Elder counties . The 2010 Census placed the Metro population at 597,159 . In 2010 , Forbes rated the Ogden-Clearfield MSA as the 6th best place to raise a family . Ogden has had a sister city relationship to Hof ( Germany ) since 1954 .
The Big South Conference is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the NCAA 's Division I . Originally a non-football conference , the Big South began sponsoring football in 2002 . Its football teams are part of the Football Championship Subdivision ( FCS ) . The Big South , founded in 1983 , is firmly rooted in the South Atlantic region of the United States , with full member institutions located in North Carolina , South Carolina , and Virginia . Associate members are located in Alabama , Georgia , and New Jersey .
Charlotte ( /ˈʃɑːrlət/ ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina . Located in the Piedmont , it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County . In 2018 , the U.S. Census Bureau estimated the population was 872,498 , making it the 16th-most populous city in the United States . The city is the cultural , economic , and transportation center of the Charlotte metropolitan area , whose population ranks 23rd in the U.S. , and had a population of 2,569,213 , in 2018 . The Charlotte metropolitan area is part of a sixteen-county market region or combined statistical area with a 2018 census-estimated population of 2,728,933 . Between 2004 and 2014 , Charlotte was ranked as the country 's fastest-growing metro area , with 888,000 new residents . Based on U.S. Census data from 2005 to 2015 , Charlotte tops the U.S. in millennial population growth . It is the second-largest city in the southeastern United States , just behind Jacksonville , Florida . It is the third-fastest-growing major city in the United States . It is listed as a gamma global city by the Globalization and World Cities Research Network . Residents are referred to as Charlotteans . Charlotte is home to the corporate headquarters of Bank of America , Truist Financial , and the east coast operations of Wells Fargo , which along with other financial institutions has made it the second-largest banking center in the United States since 1995 .
The Colonial Athletic Association ( CAA ) is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the NCAA 's Division I whose full members are located in East Coast states from Massachusetts to South Carolina . Most of its members are public universities , and the conference is headquartered in Richmond . The CAA was historically a Southern conference until the addition of four schools in the Northeast ( of five that joined from rival conference America East ) after the turn of the 21st century , which added balance to the conference . The CAA was founded in 1979 as the ECAC South basketball league . It was renamed the Colonial Athletic Association in 1985 when it added championships in other sports ( although a number of members maintain ECAC affiliation in some sports ) . As of 2006 , it organizes championships in 21 men 's and women 's sports . The addition of Northeastern University in 2005 gave the conference the NCAA minimum of six football programs needed to sponsor football . For the 2007 football season , all of the Atlantic 10 Conference 's football programs joined the CAA football conference , as agreed in May 2005 .
Richmond ( /ˈrɪtʃmənd/ ) is the capital city of the Commonwealth of Virginia . It is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area ( MSA ) and the Greater Richmond Region . Richmond was incorporated in 1742 and has been an independent city since 1871 . As of the 2010 census , the city 's population was 204,214 ; in 2018 , the population was estimated to be 228,783 , making Richmond the fourth-most populous city in Virginia . The Richmond Metropolitan Area has a population of 1,260,029 , the third-most populous metro in the state . Richmond is at the fall line of the James River , 44 miles ( 71 km ) west of Williamsburg , 66 miles ( 106 km ) east of Charlottesville , 91 miles ( 146 km ) east of Lynchburg and 92 miles ( 148 km ) south of Washington , D.C . Surrounded by Henrico and Chesterfield counties , the city is at the intersections of Interstate 95 and Interstate 64 and encircled by Interstate 295 , Virginia State Route 150 and Virginia State Route 288 . Major suburbs include Midlothian to the southwest , Chesterfield to the south , Varina to the southeast , Sandston to the east , Glen Allen to the north and west , Short Pump to the west and Mechanicsville to the northeast . The site of Richmond had been an important village of the Powhatan Confederacy , and was briefly settled by English colonists from Jamestown from 1609 to 1611 . The present city of Richmond was founded in 1737 . It became the capital of the Colony and Dominion of Virginia in 1780 , replacing Williamsburg . During the Revolutionary War period , several notable events occurred in the city , including Patrick Henry 's Give me liberty or give me death speech in 1775 at St. John 's Church , and the passage of the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom written by Thomas Jefferson .
The Ivy League is an American collegiate athletic conference comprising sports teams from eight private universities in the Northeastern United States . The term Ivy League is typically used to refer to those eight schools as a group of elite colleges beyond the sports context . The eight members are Brown University , Columbia University , Cornell University , Dartmouth College , Harvard University , the University of Pennsylvania , Princeton University , and Yale University . Ivy League has connotations of academic excellence , selectivity in admissions , and social elitism . While the term was in use as early as 1933 , it became official only after the formation of the NCAA Division I athletic conference in 1954 . Seven of the eight schools were founded during the colonial period ( Cornell was founded in 1865 ) , and thus account for seven of the nine Colonial Colleges chartered before the American Revolution . The other two colonial colleges , Rutgers University and the College of William & Mary , became public institutions instead . Ivy League schools are generally viewed as some of the most prestigious in the world , and are ranked among the best universities worldwide by U.S. News & World Report . All eight universities place in the top seventeen of the 2020 U.S. News & World Report national university rankings , including four Ivies in the top three ( Columbia and Yale are tied for 3rd ) . In the 2019 U.S. News & World Report global university rankings , three Ivies rank in the top ten ( Harvard 1st , Columbia 7th , and Princeton 8th ) and six in the top twenty-three . Undergraduate-focused Ivies such as Brown University and Dartmouth College rank 99th and 197th , respectively . U.S. News has named a member of the Ivy League as the best national university in each of the past 18 years ending with the 2018 rankings : Princeton eleven times , Harvard twice , and the two schools tied for first five times .
Princeton is a municipality with a borough form of government in Mercer County , New Jersey , United States , that was established in its current form on January 1 , 2013 , through the consolidation of the now-defunct Borough of Princeton and Princeton Township . As of the 2010 United States Census , the municipality 's population was 28,572 , reflecting the former township 's population of 16,265 , along with the 12,307 in the former borough . Princeton was founded before the American Revolutionary War . It is the home of Princeton University , which bears its name and moved to the community in 1756 from its previous location in Newark . Although its association with the university is primarily what makes Princeton a college town , other important institutions in the area include the Institute for Advanced Study , Westminster Choir College , Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory , Princeton Theological Seminary , Opinion Research Corporation , Bristol-Myers Squibb , Siemens Corporate Research , SRI International , FMC Corporation , The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation , Amrep , Church and Dwight , Berlitz International , and Dow Jones & Company . Princeton is roughly equidistant from New York City and Philadelphia . It is close to many major highways that serve both cities ( e.g . Interstate 95 and U.S. Route 1 ) , and receives major television and radio broadcasts from each . It is also close to Trenton , New Jersey 's capital city , and Edison . The New Jersey governor 's official residence has been in Princeton since 1945 , when Morven in what was then Princeton Borough became the first Governor 's mansion . It was later replaced by the larger Drumthwacket , a colonial mansion located in the former Township . Morven became a museum property of the New Jersey Historical Society .
The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference ( MEAC ) is a collegiate athletic conference whose full members are historically black colleges and universities ( HBCUs ) in the Southeastern and the Mid-Atlantic United States . It participates in the National Collegiate Athletic Association 's Division I , and in football , in the Football Championship Subdivision ( FCS ) . Currently , the MEAC has automatic qualifying bids for NCAA postseason play in baseball ( since 1994 ) , men 's basketball ( since 1981 ) , women 's basketball ( since 1982 ) , football ( 1996-2015 ) , softball ( since 1995 ) , men and women 's tennis ( since 1998 ) , and volleyball ( since 1994 ) . Bowling was officially sanctioned as a MEAC governed sport in 1999 . Before that season , the MEAC was the first conference to secure NCAA sanctioning for women 's bowling by adopting the club sport prior to the 1996-97 school year .
Norfolk ( /ˈnɔːrfʊk/ ( listen ) NOR-fuuk ) is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States . At the 2010 census , the population was 242,803 ; in 2018 , the population was estimated to be 244,076 making it the second-most populous city in Virginia after neighboring Virginia Beach and the 91st largest city in the nation . Norfolk is located at the core of the Hampton Roads metropolitan area , named for the large natural harbor of the same name located at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay . It is one of nine cities and seven counties that constitute the Hampton Roads metro area , officially known as the Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News , VA-NC MSA . The city is bordered to the west by the Elizabeth River and to the north by the Chesapeake Bay . It also shares land borders with the independent cities of Chesapeake to its south and Virginia Beach to its east . Norfolk is one of the oldest cities in Hampton Roads , and is considered to be the historic , urban , financial , and cultural center of the region . The city has a long history as a strategic military and transportation point . The largest naval base in the world , Naval Station Norfolk , is located in Norfolk along with one of NATO 's two Strategic Command headquarters . The city also has the corporate headquarters of Norfolk Southern Railway , one of North America 's principal Class I railroads , however the company is currently in the process of relocating their headquarters to Atlanta , Georgia . Norfolk is also home to Maersk Line , Limited , which manages the world 's largest fleet of US-flag vessels . As the city is bordered by multiple bodies of water , Norfolk has many miles of riverfront and bayfront property , including beaches on the Chesapeake Bay .
The Missouri Valley Football Conference ( MVFC ) , formerly the Gateway Football Conference , is a collegiate athletic conference which operates in the Midwestern United States . It participates in the NCAA 's Division I Football Championship Subdivision ( FCS ) as a football-only conference .
St. Louis ( /seɪnt ˈluːɪs/ ) is an independent city in Missouri . It is the largest metropolitan area in the state of Missouri , however the independent city of St. Louis is the second-largest city in Missouri behind Kansas City . It is situated along the western bank of the Mississippi River , which forms the state line between Illinois and Missouri . The Missouri River merges with the Mississippi River 15 river miles north of Downtown St. Louis , forming the fourth-longest river system in the world . The estimated 2018 population of the city proper was 302,838 and the bi-state metropolitan area was 2,804,724 . Greater St. Louis is the largest metropolitan area in Missouri , second-largest in Illinois , 7th-largest in the Great Lakes Megalopolis , and the 20th-largest in the United States . Before European settlement , the area was a regional center of Native American Mississippian culture . The city of St. Louis was founded in 1764 by French fur traders Pierre Laclède and Auguste Chouteau , and named after Louis IX of France . In 1764 , following France 's defeat in the Seven Years ' War , the area was ceded to Spain and retroceded back to France in 1800 . In 1803 , the United States acquired the territory as part of the Louisiana Purchase . During the 19th century , St. Louis became a major port on the Mississippi River ; at the time of the 1870 Census , it was the fourth-largest city in the country . It separated from St. Louis County in 1877 , becoming an independent city and limiting its own political boundaries .
The Northeast Conference ( NEC ) is a collegiate athletic conference whose schools are members of the National Collegiate Athletic Association ( NCAA ) . Teams in the NEC compete in Division I for all sports except football , which competes in the Division I Football Championship Subdivision ( FCS ) , formerly Division I-AA . Participating schools are located principally in the Northeastern United States . The conference was named the ECAC Metro Conference when it was established in 1981 . The original eleven member schools were Fairleigh Dickinson University , the Brooklyn campus of Long Island University ( whose athletic program has now merged with that of LIU 's Post campus into a single athletic program ) , Loyola College in Maryland ( left in 1989 ) , Marist College ( left in 1997 ) , Robert Morris University , St. Francis College ( NY ) , Saint Francis College ( PA ) , Siena College ( left in 1984 ) , Towson State University ( left in 1982 ) , the University of Baltimore ( left in 1983 ) and Wagner College . The conference 's name was changed to its present form on August 1 , 1988 . Other names considered were Big North , Great North , North Shore , Northern , Northeastern , Eastern and Eastern Private Intercollegiate . The Northeast Conference has expanded eight times since 1981 . The expansions and additions from the original charter members were in 1985 ( Monmouth University , which left in 2013 ) , 1989 ( Mount St. Mary 's University ) , 1992 ( Rider University , which left in 1997 ) , 1997 ( Central Connecticut State University ) , 1998 ( Quinnipiac University and the University of Maryland , Baltimore County which respectively left in 2013 and 2003 ) , 1999 ( Sacred Heart University ) , 2008 ( Bryant University ) , and 2019 ( Merrimack College ) . The Northeast Conference 's rank was largest at 12 in 2008 with the addition of Bryant University ; it dropped to 10 in 2013 with the departure of Monmouth and Quinnipiac for the MAAC , and returned to 11 with the 2019 addition of Merrimack . The most recent changes were announced in 2018 and took effect with the 2019-20 school year . First , on September 10 , the NEC announced it would add Merrimack .
Somerset is an unincorporated community and census-designated place ( CDP ) located within Franklin Township , in Somerset County , New Jersey , United States . As of the 2010 United States Census , the CDP 's population was 22,083 . Somerset housed one of the first Marconi Wireless Stations in the United States .
The Ohio Valley Conference ( OVC ) is a collegiate athletic conference which operates in the Midwestern and Southeastern United States . It participates in Division I of the NCAA ; the conference 's football programs compete in the Football Championship Subdivision ( FCS ; formerly known as Division I-AA ) , the lower of two levels of Division I football competition . The OVC has 12 members , 9 of which compete in football in the conference .
Brentwood is a suburb of Nashville , Tennessee , located in Williamson County , part of Middle Tennessee . The population was 37,060 as of the 2010 U.S. Census , and estimated at 42,505 in 2018 .
The Patriot League is a collegiate athletic conference comprising private institutions of higher education and two United States service academies based in the Northeastern United States . Outside the Ivy League , it is among the most selective group of higher education institutions in NCAA Division I and has a very high student-athlete graduation rate for both the NCAA graduation success rate and the federal graduation rate . The Patriot League consists of 10 core members : American University , the United States Military Academy ( Army ) , Boston University , Bucknell University , Colgate University , College of the Holy Cross , Lafayette College , Lehigh University , Loyola University Maryland and the United States Naval Academy ( Navy ) . All 10 core members participate in the NCAA 's Division I for all Patriot League sports that they offer . Since not all schools sponsor every available NCAA sport , such as ice hockey and wrestling , most schools are affiliated with other collegiate conferences . Additionally , the Patriot League has a unique arrangement for football . Bucknell , Colgate , Holy Cross , Lafayette , and Lehigh are members of the Patriot League 's Football Championship Subdivision ( FCS ) conference . Of the five other conference members , American , Boston University and Loyola Maryland do not sponsor football while Army and Navy play in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision ; Army is an independent while Navy currently competes as an associate member of the American Athletic Conference . Four other private institutions are Patriot League members only for specific sports and are referred to as 'Patriot League associate members . ' Fordham University and Georgetown University are associate members in football , while MIT is an associate member in women 's rowing and University of Richmond is an associate member in women 's golf .
Center Valley is an unincorporated community ( Census Class Code U6 ) one mile north of Coopersburg , Pennsylvania , at the intersection of Pennsylvania Route 309 and Pennsylvania Route 378 in Upper Saucon Township , Lehigh County , Pennsylvania in the United States . Its zip code is 18034 .
The Pioneer Football League ( PFL ) is a collegiate athletic conference which operates in the United States . The conference participates in the NCAA 's Division I Football Championship Subdivision ( FCS ) as a football-only conference . It has member schools that range from New York , North Carolina , and Florida in the east to California in the west . It is headquartered in St. Louis , in the same complex that also contains the offices of the Missouri Valley Conference and Missouri Valley Football Conference . Unlike most other Division I FCS conferences , the Pioneer League consists of institutions that choose not to award athletic scholarships ( grants-in-aid ) to football players . Most of the PFL 's members are private schools . Morehead State University is currently the only public school in the conference .
The Southern Conference ( SoCon ) is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association ( NCAA ) Division I . Southern Conference football teams compete in the Football Championship Subdivision ( formerly known as Division I-AA ) . Member institutions are located in the states of Alabama , Georgia , North Carolina , South Carolina , Tennessee , and Virginia . Established in 1921 , the Southern Conference ranks as the fifth-oldest major college athletic conference in the United States , and either the third- or fourth-oldest in continuous operation , depending on definitions . Among conferences currently in operation , the Big Ten ( 1896 ) and Missouri Valley ( 1907 ) are indisputably older . The Pac-12 Conference did not operate under its current charter until 1959 , but claims the history of the Pacific Coast Conference , founded in 1915 , as its own . The Southwest Conference ( SWC ) was founded in 1914 , but ceased operation in 1996 . The Big Eight Conference claimed the same history as the Missouri Valley from 1907 to 1928 during its existence ; though it essentially merged with four SWC members to form the Big 12 Conference in 1996 , the Big 12 does not claim the Big Eight 's legacy . The Ivy League was formally organized in 1954 with athletic competition starting in 1955 , but claims the history of the Eastern Intercollegiate Basketball League , which competed from 1901 to 1955 , as its own . The SoCon was the first conference to use the three-point field goal in basketball in a November 29 , 1980 game at Western Carolina against Middle Tennessee State University ( MTSU ) , where Ronnie Carr shot the historic shot from 22 feet ( 6.7 m ) away and the Catamounts won 77-70 . The Southern Conference is considered one of the stronger football conferences in the Football Championship Subdivision and is considered a mid-major conference in basketball . It has also garnered considerable national attention from its recent success in these sports : in particular , former member , three-time Division I NCAA Football champion Appalachian State Mountaineers , who stunned the fifth-ranked Michigan Wolverines 34-32 on September 1 , 2007 ; from the Davidson Wildcats , who reached the Elite Eight in the 2008 NCAA Men 's Division I Basketball Tournament by upsetting power programs Gonzaga ( a mid-major school which became a power program in the 2000s ) , Georgetown , and Wisconsin .
Spartanburg is a city in and the seat of Spartanburg County , South Carolina , United States , and the 12th-largest city by population in the state . The city of Spartanburg has a municipal population of 37,013 , and Spartanburg County has an urban population of 180,786 as of the 2010 census . For a time , the Office of Management and Budget grouped Spartanburg and Union Counties together as the Spartanburg Metropolitan Statistical Area , but as of 2018 the OMB defines only Spartanburg County as the Spartanburg MSA . Spartanburg is the second-largest city in the greater Greenville-Spartanburg-Anderson Combined Statistical Area , which has a population of 1,385,045 as of 2014 . It is part of a 10-county region of northwestern South Carolina known as The Upstate , and is located 98 miles ( 158 km ) northwest of Columbia , 80 miles ( 130 km ) west of Charlotte , North Carolina , and about 190 miles ( 310 km ) northeast of Atlanta , Georgia . Spartanburg is the home of Wofford College , Converse College , USC Upstate , Spartanburg Methodist College , and Spartanburg Community College . It is also the site of headquarters for Denny 's .
The Southland Conference , abbreviated to SLC , is a collegiate athletic conference which operates in the South Central United States ( specifically Texas , Louisiana , and Arkansas ) . It participates in the NCAA 's Division I for all sports ; for football , it participates in the Division I Football Championship Subdivision ( FCS ) . The Southland sponsors 18 sports , 10 for women and eight for men , and is governed by a presidential Board of Directors and an Advisory Council of athletic and academic administrators . Tom Burnett was named the Southland 's sixth commissioner on Dec. 23 , 2002 . From 1996 to 2002 , for football only , the Southland Conference was known as the Southland Football League . The conference 's offices are located in the Dallas suburb of Frisco , Texas .
Frisco is a city in Collin and Denton counties in Texas . It is part of the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex , and is approximately 25 miles ( 40 km ) from both Dallas Love Field and Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport . The city population was 116,989 at the 2010 census . The 2018 Census estimate placed the city population at 188,170 . Frisco was the fastest-growing city in the United States in 2017 , and also the fastest-growing city in the nation from 2000 to 2009 . In the late 1990s , the northern Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex suburban development tide hit the northern border of Plano and spilled into Frisco , sparking rapid growth into the 2000s . Like many of the cities in the northern suburbs of Dallas , Frisco serves as a bedroom community for professionals who work in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex . Since 2003 , Frisco has received the designation Tree City USA by the National Arbor Day Foundation .
The Southwestern Athletic Conference ( SWAC ) is a collegiate athletic conference headquartered in Birmingham , Alabama , which is made up of historically black colleges and universities ( HBCUs ) in the Southern United States . It participates in the NCAA 's Division I for all sports ; in football , it participates in the Football Championship Subdivision ( FCS ) , formerly referred to as Division I-AA . The SWAC is widely considered the premier HBCU conference and ranks among the elite in the nation in terms of alumni affiliated with professional sports teams , particularly in football . On the gridiron , the conference has been the biggest draw on the Football Championship Subdivision ( FCS ) level of the NCAA , leading the nation in average home attendance every year except one since FCS has been in existence . In 1994 , the SWAC fell just 40,000 fans short of becoming the first non-Football Bowl Subdivision conference to attract one million fans to its home games .
Birmingham ( /ˈbɜːrmɪŋhæm/ BUR-ming-ham ) is a city in the north central region of the U.S. state of Alabama . With an estimated 2018 population of 209,880 , it is the most populous city in Alabama . Birmingham is the seat of Jefferson County , Alabama 's most populous and fifth largest county . As of 2018 , the Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 1,151,801 , making it the most populous in Alabama and 49th-most populous in the United States . Birmingham serves as an important regional hub and is associated with the Deep South , Piedmont , and Appalachian regions of the nation . Birmingham was founded in 1871 , during the post-Civil War Reconstruction era , through the merger of three farm towns , most notably Elyton . The new city was named for Birmingham , England , the United Kingdom 's second largest city and then a major industrial city . The Alabama city annexed its smaller neighbors as it developed into a major industrial center based on mining , the iron and steel industry , and rail transport . Most of the original settlers were of English ancestry . The city was developed as a place where low paid , non-unionized immigrants ( mainly Irish and Italian ) , along with African-Americans from rural Alabama , who worked in the city 's steel mills and blast furnaces and gave it a competitive advantage over unionized industrial cities of the Midwest and Northeast . :14