How have inequality levels across local labor markets in the subnational United States changed over the past eight decades? In this study, I examine inequality divergence, or the inequality of inequalities. While divergence trends of central tendencies such as per capita income have been well documented, less is known about the descriptive trends or contributing mechanisms for inequality. In this study, I construct wage inequality measures in 722 local labor markets covering the entire

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... s United States across 22 waves of Census and American Community Survey data from 1940-2019 to assess the historical trends of inequality divergence. I apply variance decomposition and counterfactual techniques to develop main conclusions. Inequality divergence follows a u-shaped pattern, declining through 1990 but with contemporary divergence at as high a level as any time in the past 80 years. Early era convergence occurred broadly and primarily worked to reduce interregional differences, whereas modern inequality divergence operates through a combination of novel mechanisms, most notably through highly unequal urban areas separating from other labor markets. Overall, results show geographical fragmentation of inequality underneath overall inequality growth in recent years, highlighting the fundamental importance of spatial trends for broader stratification outcomes.