In counties where slavery had been more prevalent, African Americans accumulated human capital more slowly after the Civil War. However, the shadow of slavery emerged after Reconstruction. This study suggests a mechanism by which the historical prevalence of slavery led to selective application...

We study the influence of agricultural labor intensity on individualism across U.S. counties. To measure historical labor intensity in agriculture we combine data on crop-specific labor requirements and county-specific crop mix around 1900. To address endogeneity we exploit climate-induced...