EH.net is owned and operated by the Economic History Association with the support of other sponsoring organizations.
Carlson, L. Development of the U.S. Economy
EMORY UNIVERSITY
Department of Economics
Economics/ History 356 Development of the U.S. Economy
Fall 1995 Prof. Leonard Carlson
This course surveys the economic history of the United States from the colonial period to 1970. We will consider the development of the U.S. economy as a case study in modern economic growth and of the problems that may bring. Among things we will look
at: the colonial origins of the U.S. economy, the economics of the American Revolution, the development of the banking system; business cycles and depressions (the Great Depression of 1929-1933 will be considered in depth); the origins, impact, and legaci
es of slavery; the rise of big business; the origins and effect of increased government regulation; and significant changes in the U.S. economic system since World War II.
Prerequisites: Economics 101 and 112 or the consent of instructor.
Books
Atack and Passell, A New Economic View of American History Second Edition, New York, Norton, 1994. (Referred to below and Atack and Passell)
Whaples and Betts, Historical Perspectives on the American Economy, Selected Readings, New York, Cambridge University Press, 1995. (Referred to below as W&B)
"Readings for Economics 356/History 356" in Emory University Bookstore. Referred to as Readings below. These are also on reserve in Chandler Library.
A few assignments are not in these books. These are also on reserve in Chandler.
Honor Code
The Honor Code is taken seriously in the class. It applies to all tests and homework assignments. If you have questions about the rules covering a given assignment, ASK ME.
Announcements
Students are responsible for all material covered in class and any announcements made in class. Readings are found either in the two textbooks or on reserve at Chandler Library.
Office Hours
Office: 1641 N. Decatur Rd, phone 727-6375, e-mail econlac@emory.edu.
Office hours: Tuesday & Thursday, 10-11:30; Friday 10:30-11:30 am and by arrangement.
Examinations and Assignments
Assignment Weight in Final Grade
Class Attendance & Participation 5%
and Mid-term Exam (Thursday Oct. 19) 35%
Short Essays 15%
Final Exam (Tues., Dec. 12, 4:30-7:00 PM) 45%
Grades will be determined by your performance on these assignments. This schedule of exams and assignments is subject to change. Any changes will be announced in class. Students are responsible for all announcements made in class.
Short Essays
Each of you will be expected to do two short papers (2-3 pages) papers analyzing a journal article. You will be given more details about this later.
COURSE SCHEDULE
Assignments maybe changed: you are responsible for all announcements made in class
NO. & DATE TOPICS AND READING ASSIGNMENTS
1. Th. Aug. 24 INTRODUCTION, LONG TERM GROWTH
Atack and Passell, Intro., ch. 1
McCloskey, "Does the Past Have a Useful Economics?" ch 1 in W&B.
2. Tu.Aug. 29 BRITISH SETTLEMENT OF NORTH AMERICA
Atack and Passell, ch. 2
Galenson, "The Rise and Fall of Indentured Servitude," ch 4 in W&B.
3. Th. Aug. 31 ECONOMIC GROWTH IN BRITISH NORTH AMERICA
Atack and Passell, ch. 2.
M Sept. 4 **LABOR DAY HOLIDAY**
4. Tu.Sept. 5 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
Atack and Passell, ch. 3.
Egnal and Ernst, "An Economic Interpretation of the American Revolution," ch. 2 in W&B.
5. Th. Sept. 7 THE NEW REPUBLIC AND ADOPTION OF THE CONSTITUTION;
North, "Institutions, Economic Growth and Freedom."
McGuire and Ohsfeldt, "Economic Interests and the American Constitution: A Quantitative Rehabilitation of Robert Beard," Journal of Economic History, vol. 44, June 1984, and in Readings.
6. Tu.Sept. 12 MONEY AND BANKING BEFORE THE CIVIL WAR
Atack and Passell, ch. 4.
7. Th. Sept. 14 FOREIGN TRADE AND COMMERCIAL POLICY
Atack and Passell, ch. 5.
8. Tu.Sept. `19 THE TRANSPORTATION REVOLUTION
Atack and Passell, ch. 6.
Fishlow, "The Dynamics of Railroad Expansion into the West," in Fogel and Engerman, (eds.), The Reinterpretation of American Economic History, ch. 30.
9. Th. Sept. 21 THE BEGINNINGS OF INDUSTRIALIZATION IN THE NORTH
Atack and Passell, ch. 7
10. Tu.Sept. 26 POPULATION GROWTH AND DISTRIBUTION
Atack and Passell, ch. 8
11. Th. Sept. 28 WESTWARD EXPANSION, PUBLIC LAND POLICY AND THE FATE OF WESTERN INDIANS
Atack and Passell, ch. 9
Washburn, Red Man's Land, White Man's Law, ch 2, 3.
12. Tu.Oct. 3 AGRICULTURE IN THE NORTH BEFORE THE CIVIL WAR
Atack and Passell, ch. 10
Rothenberg, "The Market and Massachusetts Farmers," Ch 3 in W&B.
13. Th. Oct. 5 SLAVERY AND SOUTHERN DEVELOPMENT
Atack and Passell, ch. 11.
Weiman, "Urban Growth of the Periphery of the Antebellum Cotton Belt: Atlanta, 1847-1860," Journal of Economic History, and in Readings.
Tu. Oct. 10 **FALL BREAK**
14. Th. Oct. 12 HOW SLAVERY WORKED
Atack and Passell, ch. 12.
15. Tu.Oct. 17 THE ECONOMICS OF THE CIVIL WAR
Atack and Passell, ch. 13.
16 Th. Oct. 19 **MIDTERM EXAM**
17. Tu.Oct. 24 THE IMPACT OF THE CIVIL WAR & THE SLOW RECOVERY OF THE SOUTH
Atack and Passell, ch. 14.
Wright, "The Economic Revolution in the American South," in W&B.
18. Th. Oct. 26 NORTHERN AGRICULTURE AND FARM DISCONTENT
Mayhew, "A Reappraisal of the Causes of Farm Protest in the United States," ch. 15 in W&B.
19. Tu.Oct. 31 THE SPREAD OF THE RAILROAD
Atack and Passell, ch. 16 and pages 656-662.
Chandler, "The Railroads: The First Modern Business Enterprises," ch. 10 in W&B.
20. Th. Nov. 2 THE GROWTH OF THE NATIONAL MARKET AND THE RISE OF BIG BUSINESS
Atack and Passell, ch. 17.
Atack, "Industrial Structure and the Emergence of the Modern Industrial Corporation," ch. 12 in W&B.
21. Tu.Nov. 7 THE MONEY SUPPLY AND THE FINANCIAL SYSTEM
Atack and Passell, ch. 18
Sylla, "Federal policy, banking structure, and capital mobilization in the United States, 1863-1913," ch. 14 in W&B.
Rockoff, "The 'Wizard of Oz' as Nineteenth Century Monetary Allegory," ch. 16 in W & B.
22. Th. Nov. 9 THE NATIONAL BANKING SYSTEM & THE PASSAGE OF THE FEDERAL RESERVE ACT
White, Regulation and Reform of the American Banking System, ch. 2.
23. Tu.Nov. 14 THE PROGRESSIVE ERA, WORLD WAR I AND THE 1920'S
Atack and Passell, ch. 20.
24. Th. Nov. 16 THE STOCK MARKET CRASH AND THE GREAT DEPRESSION
Atack and Passell, ch. 21.
Friedman and Schwartz, "Factors Accounting for Changes in the Stock of Money," ch. 18 in W&B.
Temin, "The Fall in the Demand for Money," ch. 19 in W&B.
Romer, "The Nation in Depression," Journal of Economic Perspectives, Vol. 7, no. 2, Spring 1993, pp. 19-40, and in Readings.
25. Tu.Nov. 21 THE NEW DEAL AND RECOVERY
Atack and Passell, ch. 22, 23.
Th.-F Nov. 23-4 THANKSGIVING HOLIDAY
26. Tu.Nov. 28 WORLD WAR II AND THE POST-WAR ECONOMY
Ratner, Soltow, and Sylla, "The Planned Economy of the American Economy," ch. 20 in The Evolution of the American Economy and in Readings.
27. Th. Nov. 30 THE LABOR MARKET IN LONG RUN PERSPECTIVE
Atack and Passell, ch. 19
Goldin, "The Changing Economic Role of Women," ch. 17 in W&B.
Easterlin, "American Population Since 1940," in Feldstein (Ed), The American Economy in Transition, pp. 275-321, and in Readings
28. Tu.Dec. 5 AMERICAN TECHNOLOGICAL LEADERSHIP 1900-1990: ORIGINS AND PROSPECTS
Hughes and Cain, "Modern Industrial Developments," ch. 30 in American Economic History, and in Readings.
Wright, "The Origins of American Industrial Success, 1879-1940." ch. 13 in W&B.
Nelson and Wright, "The Rise and Fall of American Technological Leadership: The Postwar Era in Historical Perspective," Journal of Economic Literature 30, (Dec. 1992), pp. 1931-1964, and in Readings
Tues., Dec. 12 4:30-7:00 FINAL EXAM
EMORY UNIVERSITY
Department of Economics
Economics/ History 356 Development of the U.S. Economy
Fall 1995 Prof. Leonard Carlson
Midterm Exam
Instructions: Answer your questions in a blue book marked only with your student identification number. Please sign the Honor code statement at the end of the exam.
HONOR PLEDGE: I pledge that I have neither given nor received information concerning this exam that would constitute a violation of the Honor Code. I am not aware of any honor code violations.
X_________________________________
(Signed at the completion of the exam)
Part I: (15 minutes) (20%)
Identify and briefly explain the historical significance of five of the following (two or three sentences):
Tariff of Abominations
Boston Manufacturing Company
"Target bequest model"
Proclamation of 1763
Intensive Growth
Northwest Ordinance of 1787
Part II, Do one of the following: (15 minutes) 20%
1. How did Paul David account economic growth from 1790 to 1840? What were the most important sources of growth in those years? What does this imply for Rostow's thesis about the way in which countries develop?
2. Why did the institution of indentured servitude arise in colonial North America. What economic problems were solved by the form of the indentured contract? Why did indentured labor give way to slave labor in the South? Finally, why did slavery larg
ely fail to take hold North of the Mason Dixon line (the boarder between Pennsylvania and Maryland)?
Part III: Do two out of the following three (45 minutes) (60%)
1. The United States might be seen to have a natural comparative advantage in agriculture. Thomas Jefferson foresaw that development of the U. S. as an agricultural society. Yet by 1860 the U. S. was, by world standards, a major industrial nation. How
did this occur? What was uniquely "American" about the way the manufacturing sector developed?
Consider the factors led to the development of American manufacturing -- what industries developed, who worked in them and where were they located. What public policies aided or hindered that development?
2. Some historians have argued that Andrew Jackson's veto of the renewal of the charter of the bank of the United States and subsequent policies led to the Panic of 1837 and the following depression. How have they reached this conclusion? Some rece
nt historians have rejected this view in favor of an interpretation which points to the international side of events in the late 1830s. What is this explanation and what evidence is cited for this view?
3. "No taxation without representation!"
Quote attributed to colonial revolutionaries
A number of scholars have considered economic aspects of the American Revolution. In particular some have looked at the burden and benefits of being a colony in 1770. What were those burdens and benefits? Was the development of the colonies significant
ly harmed by these restrictions? Who was harmed? Explain the basis of your argument.