A House Dividing - Economic Development in Pennsylvania and Virginia before the Civil War

A House Dividing compares Virginia and Pennsylvania to answer a crucial question of American history: how did slavery undermine the development of the southern economy? Extensive archival research reveals that in the first decades of the nineteenth century, local residents in each state financed transportation improvements to raise land values and spur commercial growth. In the 1830s, however, Philadelphia capitalists began financing Pennsylvania's railroad network, eventually building integrated systems that reached deep within the Midwest. Virginia's railroads, still dependent upon local investment and funds from the state government, remained a collection of local lines without western connections. The lack of a great city that could provide capital and traffic for large-scale railroads was the Achilles' heel of Virginia's slave economy. The chains of slavery, Virginians learned to their dismay, also shackled the invisible hand of the market.

Sommario

Acknowledgments; Introduction: Regional Development in Comparative Perspective; 1. Developmental corporations in a slave-labor society; 2. Developmental corporations in a free-labor society; 3. Railroads and local development; 4. The local politics of market development; 5. Urban capital and the superiority of Pennsylvania's transportation network; 6. Why Antebellum Virginians never developed a big city; Epilogue; Appendix; Bibliography; Index.

Riassunto

A House Dividing compares Virginia and Pennsylvania to demonstrate how slavery undermined the development of the southern economy. While the North enjoyed bustling cities and rapid technological progress, Professor Majewski explains how slavery prevented the growth of consumer markets, large-scale cities, and integrated railroad networks in the South.

Dettagli sul prodotto

• Autori: John Majewski, John D. Majewski
• Editore: Cambridge Academic
• Lingue: Inglese
• Formato: Copertina rigida
• Pubblicazione: 19.06.2000
• EAN: 9780521590235
• ISBN: 978-0-521-59023-5
• Dimensioni: 152 mm x 229 mm x 17 mm
• Peso: 450 g
• Illustrazioni: 23 tables, Tabellen, nicht spezifiziert
• Serie: Studies in Economic History an; Studies in Economic History and Policy
• Categorie: Saggistica > Storia > Altro; Scienze sociali, diritto, economia > Economia > Economia internazionale; Virginia, Pennsylvania, BUSINESS & ECONOMICS / Economic History, BUSINESS & ECONOMICS / Development / Economic Development, c 1800 to c 1900, 19th century, c 1800 to c 1899, Economic history, Development economics & emerging economies, Development economics and emerging economies