Economic History Association 2010 Annual Meeting

Scholars who work on a single locality, period, or institution usually have in mind some kind of comparative question, although the comparative dimension is often implicit rather than explicitly articulated.  Recently, formal comparative approaches have figured more prominently in economic history. These approaches take a variety of forms, from detailed qualitative studies of two or more cases to quantitative examinations of large numbers of countries. This conference seeks to provoke a dialog between the comparative and the specific by attracting a broad range of papers that are implicitly or explicitly comparative. What do we learn from comparative work?  How can we make better comparisons?  What would we lose if all work was comparative?

The Program Committee (Timothy Guinnane, Yale University (Chair); Carolyn Moehling, Rutgers University; William Summerhill, UCLA; and Jan Luiten van Zanden, Utrecht University) welcomes submissions on all subjects in economic history, though some preference will be given to papers that specifically fit the theme. Papers should be submitted individually, but authors may suggest to the Committee that three particular papers fit well together in a panel.

Papers should in all cases be works in progress rather than accepted or published work. Submitters should let the program committee know at the time of application if the paper they are proposing has already been submitted for publication. Individuals who presented or co-authored a paper given at the 2009 meeting are not eligible for inclusion in the 2010 program.

Paper and session proposals should be submitted as email attachments and sent to the following address:  ehameeting2010@gmail.com.  Paper proposals should include a 3-5 page précis and a 150-word abstract suitable for publication in the Journal of Economic History. These should be submitted as separate email attachments.  Papers should be submitted by 29 January, 2010 to ensure consideration.

Graduate students are encouraged to attend the meeting. The Association offers subsidies for travel, hotel, registration, and meals, including a special graduate student dinner. A poster session welcomes work from dissertations in progress. Applications for the poster session are due no later than 21 May 2010, and should be sent to ehameeting2010@gmail.com . The dissertation session convened by Eric Hilt (Wellesley College) and Nathan Sussman (Hebrew University) will honor six dissertations completed during the 2009-2010 academic year. The submission deadline is June 11, 2010. The Alexander Gerschenkron and Allan Nevins prizes will be awarded to the best dissertations on non-North American and North American topics respectively.

For further information, contact Meetings Coordinator Jari Eloranta at elorantaj@appstate.edu .