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American education in the age of mass migrations 1870–1930

Author

Listed:
  • Fabrice Murtin

    (OECD, Paris, France, Center for the Economics of Education (LSE), London, UK, CREST (INSEE), Malakoff Cedex, France.)

  • Martina Viarengo

    (Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA, Kennedy School of Government, Cambridge, MA, USA, London School of Economics, London, UK.)

Abstract

This paper derives original series of average years of schooling in the United States 1870–1930, which take into account the impact of mass migrations on the US educational level. We reconstruct the foreign-born US population by age and by country of origin, while combining data on the flow of migrants by country and the age pyramids of migrants by country. Then, we use original data on educational attainment in the nineteenth century presented in Morrisson and Murtin (J Human Cap, in press) in order to estimate the educational level of US immigrants by age and by country. As a result, our series are consistent with the first national estimates of average schooling in 1940. We show that mass migrations have had a significant but modest impact on the US average educational attainment. However, the educational gap between US natives and immigrants was large and increased with the second immigration wave, a phenomenon that most likely fostered the implementation of restrictive immigration rules in the 1920s.

Suggested Citation

  • Fabrice Murtin & Martina Viarengo, 2010. "American education in the age of mass migrations 1870–1930," Cliometrica, Journal of Historical Economics and Econometric History, Association Française de Cliométrie (AFC), vol. 4(2), pages 113-139, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:afc:cliome:v:4:y:2010:i:2:p:113-139
    DOI: 10.1007/s11698-009-0043-2
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Kevin H. O'Rourke & Alan M. Taylor & Jeffrey G. Williamson, 1993. "Land, labor and the wage-rental ratio : factor price convergence in the late nineteenth century," Working Papers 199311, School of Economics, University College Dublin.
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    7. Goldin, Claudia & Katz, Lawrence F., 2000. "Education and Income in the Early Twentieth Century: Evidence from the Prairies," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 60(3), pages 782-818, September.
    8. Jeffrey G. Williamson, 2006. "Inequality and Schooling Responses to Globalization Forces: Lessons from History," NBER Working Papers 12553, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    9. Foreman-Peck, James, 1992. "A Political Economy of International Migration, 1815-1914," The Manchester School of Economic & Social Studies, University of Manchester, vol. 60(4), pages 359-376, December.
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    12. Hatton, Timothy J. & Williamson, Jeffrey G., 1998. "The Age of Mass Migration: Causes and Economic Impact," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780195116519.
    13. Jeffrey G. Williamson, 2006. "Inequality and schooling responses to globalization forces: lessons from history," Proceedings, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, pages 225-248.
    14. O'Rourke, Kevin H & Taylor, Alan M & Williamson, Jeffrey G, 1996. "Factor Price Convergence in the Late Nineteenth Century," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 37(3), pages 499-530, August.
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    Cited by:

    1. Fabrice Murtin & Romain Wacziarg, 2014. "The democratic transition," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 19(2), pages 141-181, June.
    2. Christian Morrisson & Fabrice Murtin, 2009. "The Century of Education," Journal of Human Capital, University of Chicago Press, vol. 3(1), pages 1-42.
    3. repec:hal:spmain:info:hdl:2441/1ds77lna5j86jagcp29tfni72o is not listed on IDEAS
    4. Stolz, Yvonne & Baten, Jörg & Botelho, Tarcísio, 2011. "Growth effects of 19th century mass migrations: "Fome Zero" for Brazil," University of Tübingen Working Papers in Business and Economics 20, University of Tuebingen, Faculty of Economics and Social Sciences, School of Business and Economics.
    5. repec:spo:wpmain:info:hdl:2441/1ds77lna5j86jagcp29tfni72o is not listed on IDEAS
    6. repec:spo:wpmain:info:hdl:2441/5m0od0o9jn9pqbdmos7fpt28hg is not listed on IDEAS
    7. Christian Morrisson & Fabrice Murtin, 2010. "The Kuznets Curve of Education: A Global Perspective on Education Inequalities," CEE Discussion Papers 0116, Centre for the Economics of Education, LSE.
    8. Christian Morrisson & Fabrice Murtin, 2013. "The Kuznets curve of human capital inequality: 1870–2010," The Journal of Economic Inequality, Springer;Society for the Study of Economic Inequality, vol. 11(3), pages 283-301, September.
    9. repec:hal:spmain:info:hdl:2441/5m0od0o9jn9pqbdmos7fpt28hg is not listed on IDEAS

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Education; Migrations; Economic history; Economic development research;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I2 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • N70 - Economic History - - Economic History: Transport, International and Domestic Trade, Energy, and Other Services - - - General, International, or Comparative
    • O1 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development

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