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Wages in California During the Gold Rush

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  • Robert A. Margo

Abstract

The California Gold Rush was an unexpected shock of tremendous size that prompted the costly re-allocation of labor to a frontier region. Using newly-collected archival data, this paper presents estimates of nominal and real wages in Gold Rush California. Consistent with a simple dynamic model of labor market adjustment, real wages rose sharply during the early years of the Rush (1848-1852), declined abruptly following massive in-migration 1850s. However, although the Rush itself was a transitory event, it left California wages permanently higher. Estimates based on census data suggest that the supply of labor into Gold Rush California was about half as elastic as the supply of labor into Alaska during the Pipeline Era.

Suggested Citation

  • Robert A. Margo, 1997. "Wages in California During the Gold Rush," NBER Historical Working Papers 0101, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberhi:0101
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    Cited by:

    1. Robert Huang & Matthew E. Kahn, 2024. "Do Red States Have a Comparative Advantage in Generating Green Power?," Environmental and Energy Policy and the Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 5(1), pages 200-238.
    2. Ganong, Peter & Shoag, Daniel, 2017. "Why has regional income convergence in the U.S. declined?," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 102(C), pages 76-90.
    3. Keir Reeves & Lionel Frost & Charles Fahey, 2010. "Integrating The Historiography Of The Nineteenth‐Century Gold Rushes," Australian Economic History Review, Economic History Society of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 50(2), pages 111-128, July.
    4. Lionel Frost, 2010. "‘Metallic Nerves’: San Francisco And Its Hinterland During And After The Gold Rush," Australian Economic History Review, Economic History Society of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 50(2), pages 129-147, July.
    5. Willi Leibfritz & Paul O'Brien & Jean-Christophe Dumont, 2003. "Effects of Immigration on Labour Markets and Government Budgets - An Overview," CESifo Working Paper Series 874, CESifo.
    6. Weinstein, Amanda L. & Partridge, Mark D. & Tsvetkova, Alexandra, 2018. "Follow the money: Aggregate, sectoral and spatial effects of an energy boom on local earnings," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 196-209.
    7. Weinstein, Amanda & Partridge, Mark & Tsvetkova, Alexandra, 2017. "Follow the Money: How Does the Income Flow After an Energy Boom," MPRA Paper 77336, University Library of Munich, Germany.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • N31 - Economic History - - Labor and Consumers, Demography, Education, Health, Welfare, Income, Wealth, Religion, and Philanthropy - - - U.S.; Canada: Pre-1913

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