Replication data for: Population Size Effects in the Structural Development of England

Summary:  View help for Summary The English structural transformation from farming to manufacturing was accompanied by rapid technological change, expansion of trade, and massive population growth. While the roles of technology and trade in this process have been investigated, the literature has largely ignored the role of population growth. We examine population size effects on various aspects of structural development, characterizing their explicit dependence on preference-side and production-side characteristics of the economy, and trade. Our quantitative analysis of the English transformation assigns a major role to population growth, with especially notable contributions to post-1750 rise in the manufacturing employment share and the relative price dynamics.

JEL Classification:  View help for JEL Classification
      J11 Demographic Trends, Macroeconomic Effects, and Forecasts
      N13 Economic History: Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics; Industrial Structure; Growth; Fluctuations: Europe: Pre-1913
      N33 Economic History: Labor and Consumers, Demography, Education, Health, Welfare, Income, Wealth, Religion, and Philanthropy: Europe: Pre-1913
      N53 Economic History: Agriculture, Natural Resources, Environment, and Extractive Industries: Europe: Pre-1913
      N63 Economic History: Manufacturing and Construction: Europe: Pre-1913
      O33 Technological Change: Choices and Consequences; Diffusion Processes

Geographic Coverage:  View help for Geographic Coverage United Kingdom, U.K., England and Wales

Time Period(s):  View help for Time Period(s) 1541 – 1998

Data Type(s):  View help for Data Type(s) survey data; administrative records data; event/transaction data; aggregate data

Data Source:  View help for Data Source Fraction of non-rural labor in total labor: [1565-1865] - Clark (2001), Table 1, p. 8 (England); [1820 - 1992] - Maddison (1995), p. 253 (UK). Index of Real GDP per capita: [1565-1865] - Clark (2001), Table 7, p. 30 (England and Wales); [1820-1990] - Maddison (1995), p. 194 (UK). Labor Share in Total Income: [1585 - 1865] - Clark (2001), Table 9, p. 46 (England); [1924 - 1973] - Matthews et al. (1982), p. 164 (UK); Average for [1973 - 1982] - Maddison (1987), p. 659 (UK); 1992 - Gollin (2002), p. 470, Table 2, Adjustment 3 (UK). Land Share in Total Income: [1585 - 1865] - Clark (2001), Table 9, p. 46 (England); [1873 - 1913] - Matthews et al. (1982), p. 643 (UK); [1987 - 1998] - UK National Statistics. Fraction of non-rural output in total output: [1555-1865] imputed from Clark (2002), Table 4, p. 14, and Clark (2001), Table 3, p. 19; [1788-1991] - Mitchell, 1978 (UK). Population Size Index: [1541 - 1836] - Wrigley et al. (1997) (England); [1841 - 1999] - Human Mortality Database (England and Wales). Price Indices: [1555-1865] - Clark (2001); [1861-1913] - Rousseaux price indices from p. 722 of Mitchell (1988). Capital-Land Ratio Index: [1565-1865] Clark (2002). Land Rental Rate: Table 2 in Clark (2002). Total Wage Bill: Table 3 in Clark (2001). REFERENCES: Clark, Gregory (2001), The Secret History of the Industrial Revolution. Working Manuscipt. Clark, Gregory- (2002), The Agricultural Revolution and the Industrial Revolution: England, 1500-1912. Working Manuscipt. Gollin, Douglus (2002), Getting Income Shares Right. Journal of Political Economy, 110(2), pp. 458-474. Maddison, Angus (1987), Growth and Slowdown in Advanced Capitalist Economies: Techniques of Quantitative Assessment.Journal of Economic Literature, 25(2), pp. 649-698. Maddison, Angus (1995), Monitoring the World Economy: 1820/1992. Washington: OECD Development Center. Matthews, Robert C.O.; Feinstein, C.H. and Odling-Smee, John C (1982), British Economic Growth: 1856-1973. Stanford: Stanford University Press. Mitchell, Brian R (1975), European Historical Statistics 1750-1970. New York: Columbia University Press. Mitchell, Brian R (1988), British Historical Statistics. Cambridge University Press. U.K. National Statistics, http://www.statistics.gov.uk/. Wrigley, E.A.; Davies, R.S.; Oeppen, J.E. and Schofield, R.S (1997), English Population History from Family Reconstitution 1580-1837. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Unit(s) of Observation:  View help for Unit(s) of Observation year,