Showing 1 - 10 of 37
Antebellum critics of slavery argued that it was responsible for the relative inefficiency of free southern farms. We …
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10013237603
This paper relies on birth and death lists from plantation records to investigate the causes of low birth weight and poor health of young slave children. The sources of deprivation can be traced to the fetal period. The slave work routine was arduous overall and particularily intense during...
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10014106279
We assess how the African slave trade—which had enduring effects on social cohesion—continues to influence financial systems. After showing that the intensity with which people were enslaved and exported from Africa during the 1400 – 1900 period helps account for overall financial...
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10012948060
This working paper explores the significant contributions to the history of African-American slavery made by the … explicit use of economic theory and quantitative methods. American slavery of the late antebellum period [1840-1860] was one of …
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10012908822
The nullification of slave wealth after the U.S. Civil War (1861-65) was one of the largest episodes of wealth compressions in history. We document that white Southern households holding more slave assets in 1860 lost substantially more wealth by 1870, relative to households that had been...
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10012889495
For over a quarter century anthropometric historians have struggled to identify and measure the numerous factors that affect adult stature, which depends upon diet, disease and physical activity from conception to maturity. I simplify this complex problem by assessing nutritional status in a...
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10013219313
We investigate the historical origins of mistrust within Africa. Combining contemporary household survey data with historic data on slave shipments, we show that individuals whose ancestors were heavily raided during the slave trade today exhibit less trust in neighbors, relatives, and their...
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10013226943
proximately concerned the geographical expansion of slavery, but ultimately bore on the existence of the institution of slavery … itself. This paper asks why in 1861 after seventy years of artful compromises over slavery civil conflict became unavoidable … historical analysis the paper concludes that in the years leading up to 1861 the outcome of the dispute over slavery had become …
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10013235263
How much do sins visited upon one generation harm that generation's future sons, daughters, grandsons and granddaughters? I study this question by comparing outcomes for former slaves and their children and grandchildren to outcomes for free blacks (pre-1865), and their children and...
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10013239163
Slavery has been a major institution of labor coercion throughout history. Colonial societies used slavery intensively … across the Americas, and slavery remained prevalent in most countries after independence from the European powers. We … investigate the impact of slavery on long-run development in Colombia. Our identification strategy compares municipalities that …
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10013104727