This file is part of IDEAS, which uses RePEc data


[ Papers | Articles | Software | Books | Chapters | Authors | Institutions | JEL Classification | NEP reports | Search | New papers by email | Author registration | Rankings | Volunteers | FAQ | Blog | Help! ]

The U.S. Westward Expansion

Author info | Abstract | Publisher info | Download info | Related research | Statistics
Author Info
Guillaume Vandenbroucke () (University of Southern California)

Additional information is available for the following registered author(s):

Abstract

Some facts characterizing the U.S. economic development in the 19th century are: (i) the westward movement of population; (ii) the accumulation of productive land; and (iii) the wage gap in favor of the West. An overlapping-generations model is developed, to account for these facts. The model's novelty is the presence of a fixed amount of land, initially unsuitable for production, but that can be improved. Historical evidence on productivity in land-improvement activities is used to calibrate the model's parameters. The model accounts for the regional distribution of population and the path of the stock of developed land. The main factor driving the Westward Expansion is population growth. International immigration is found to contribute little to the opening of the West.

Download Info
To download:

If you experience problems downloading a file, check if you have the proper application to view it first. Information about this may be contained in the File-Format links below. In case of further problems read the IDEAS help file. Note that these files are not on the IDEAS site. Please be patient as the files may be large.

File URL: http://www.econ.rochester.edu/Faculty/GreenwoodPapers/West.pdf
File Format: application/pdf
File Function: full text
Download Restriction: None

Publisher Info
Paper provided by Economie d'Avant Garde in its series Economie d'Avant Garde Research Reports with number 4.

Download reference. The following formats are available: HTML, plain text, BibTeX, RIS (EndNote), ReDIF
Length: 28 pages
Date of creation: Jun 2003
Date of revision: Apr 2004
Handle: RePEc:eag:rereps:4

Contact details of provider:
Web page: http://www.jeremygreenwood.net/EAG.htm

For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its listing, contact: (Jeremy Greenwood).

Related research
Keywords: westward expansion land-improvement migration

Other versions of this item:

Find related papers by JEL classification:
E1 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - General Aggregative Models
J1 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics
O1 - Economic Development, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development

This item is featured on the following reading lists:

  1. Economic Logic blog
References listed on IDEAS
Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
  1. Edward C. Prescott, 1986. "Theory ahead of business cycle measurement," Quarterly Review, Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, issue Fall, pages 9-22. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  2. Hercowitz, Zvi & Pines, David, 1997. "Migration between home country and diaspora: An economic analysis," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 65(1), pages 45-59, July. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  3. David Andolfatto & Glenn MacDonald, 1998. "Technology Diffusion and Aggregate Dynamics," Review of Economic Dynamics, Elsevier for the Society for Economic Dynamics, vol. 1(2), pages 338-370, April. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  4. Steckel, Richard H., 1983. "The economic foundations of East-West migration during the 19th century," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 20(1), pages 14-36, January. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  5. Jeremy Greenwood & Ananth Seshadri & Guillaume Vandenbroucke, 2002. "The baby boom and baby bust: some macroeconomics for population economics," Proceedings, Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, issue Nov. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  6. Kevin O'Rourke & Jeffrey Williamson, 2001. "Globalization and History," MIT Press Books, The MIT Press, edition 1, volume 1, number 0262650592, December.
  7. Eckstein, Zvi & Stern, Steven & Wolpin, Kenneth I, 1988. "Fertility Choice, Land, and the Malthusian Hypothesis," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 29(2), pages 353-61, May. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
Full references

Cited by:
(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. Thomas F. Cooley & Elizabeth M. Caucutt & Nezih Guner, 2006. "The Farm, the City, and the Emergence of Social Security," Working Papers 06-21, New York University, Leonard N. Stern School of Business, Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  2. Guillaume Vandenbroucke, 2004. "The American Frontier : A Hundred Years of Western Settlement," Economie d'Avant Garde Research Reports 7, Economie d'Avant Garde. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
Statistics
Access and download statistics

Did you know? About five million pdf files are downloaded through RePEc every year.

This page was last updated on 2008-11-3.

This information is provided to you by IDEAS at the Department of Economics, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, University of Connecticut using RePEc data on a server sponsored by the Society for Economic Dynamics.