Burnette, J. Topics in United States Economic History

Economics 8: Topics in United States Economic History   Fall 1999
Professor Joyce Burnette
burnettj@wabash.edu

In this class we will learn both economics and history.  The events of
history will help us to better understand and evaluate economic theory, and
economic theory will help us to better understand history.  We will learn
the importance of economic institutions.  The study of history will teach
us important lessons about today's economic policies and institutions.

This class is organized by topic rather than chronologically.  The material
we study later in the course may have happened earlier in time.  Also, we
won't be able to cover everything that happened in US economic history.
This course will focus on four main topics: explaining growth, labor,
money, and government.

Texts

Jeremy Atack and Peter Passell, A New Economic View of American History,
Second Edition (New York: Norton, 1994)
Robert Whaples and Diane Betts, Historical Perspectives on the American
Economy (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995)
Peter Temin, Lessons from the Great Depression (Cambridge: MIT Press, 1989)

Readings marked with an asterisk are on reserve in the library.

Evaluation

Your grade will be based on the following:

        Two tests                               15% each
        Final                                   20%
        Paper 1                                 10%
        Paper 2                                 15%
        Presentation of a Paper                   6%
        Presentation of a Primary Source          6%
        Homework                                  6%
        Participation                             7%

Students are, of course, expected to attend class, read the assigned
readings, and participate in class discussions.

Outline and Reading Assignments

Introduction

I.  Wealth and Growth
Why is the US so wealthy?  What institutions promote growth?

A.  The Big Picture: Resources, Growth, and the Standard of Living
        Growth Lab
        Atack and Passell, pp. xiii-40

B.  Industrialization and Protectionism
        Atack and Passell, Ch. 5, 7
Gavin Wright, "The Origins of American Industrial Success, 1879-1940,"
Whaples and Betts Ch. 13

C.  Transportation and Growth
        Atack and Passell, Ch. 6, 16, 17
Chandler, "The Railroads: The First Modern Business Enterprises," Whaples
and Betts, Ch. 10
*O'Rourke and Williamson, "Late Nineteenth-Century Anglo-American
Factor-Price Convergence: Were Heckscher and Ohlin Right?" Journal of
Economic History, Dec. 1994, vol. 54, pp. 892-916

II. Labor
How has the US labor force changed over time?  How have conditions of work
changed? How did slavery compare to indentured servitude?  How can we
explain the current positions of blacks in the US?

A.  Description of the Labor Market.
        Labor Lab
        Atack and Passell, Ch. 19
Claudia Goldin, "The Changing Economic Role of Women," Whaples and Betts,
Ch. 17

B.  Immigration
        Atack and Passell, Ch. 8
*Joseph Ferrie, "The Wealth Accumulation of Antebellum Immigrants to the
US, 1840-60," Journal of Economic History, March 1994, pp. 1-33.

C. Indentured Servants
        Atack and Passell, pp. 40-51
Galenson, "The Rise and Fall of Indentured Servitude in the Americas,"
Whaples and Betts, Ch. 4

D.  Slavery
        Atack and Passell, Ch. 11, 12, 13
Fogel and Engerman, "The Anatomy of Exploitation," Whaples and Betts Ch. 5
David and Temin, "Slavery: the Progressive Institution?" Whaples and Betts
Ch. 6

E.  Emancipation and Reconstruction
        Atack and Passell, Ch. 14
Ransom and Sutch, "The trap of debt peonage," Whaples and Betts Ch. 8
*Claude Oubre, Forty Acres and a Mule (Baton Rouge: Louisiana State
University Press, 1978), pp. xi-xv, 18-21, 46-71.

III.  Money and Banking
How do banking institution affect the economy?  Have our banking
institution improved?  What caused the Great Depression?

A.  Banking in the Nineteenth Century
        Atack and Passell, Ch. 4, 18
Rockoff, "The 'Wizard of Oz' as Monetary Allegory," Whaples and Betts Ch. 16

B.  Causes of the Great Depression
        Great Depression Lab
        Atack and Passell, Ch. 20, 21
Friedman and Schwartz, "Factors Accounting for Changes in the Stock of
Money," Whaples and Betts Ch. 18
        Temin, Lessons from the Great Depression

IV.  Role of Government
How does government policy affect the economy?  How has the role of the
government changed since over US history?

A.  Early Government: Continuity of Law and Land Policy
        Atack and Passell, Ch. 9

B.  Labor Law and Substantive Due Process

D.  Response to the Great Depression
        Atack and Passell, Ch. 22

E.  Growth of Government in the 20th Century
        Atack and Passell, Ch. 23
*Robert Higgs, "Crisis, Bigger Government, and Ideological Change: Two
Hypotheses on the Ratchet Phenomenon," Explorations in Economic History,
Jan 1985, vol. 22, pp. 1-28.