Arbeitspapier
The Long Shadow of Slavery: The Persistence of Slave Owners in Southern Law-Making
This paper documents the persistence of the Southern slave owning elite in political power after the end of the American Civil War. We draw on a database of Texan state legislators between 1860 and 1900 and link them to their or their ancestors' slaveholdings in 1860. We then show that former slave owners made up more than half of nearly each legislature's members until the late 1890s. Legislators with slave owning backgrounds differ systematically from those without, being more likely to represent the Democratic party and more likely to work in an agricultural occupation. Regional characteristics matter for this persistence, as counties with higher soil suitability for growing cotton on average elect more former slave owners.
- Language
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Englisch
- Bibliographic citation
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Series: IZA Discussion Papers ; No. 13611
- Classification
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Wirtschaft
Political Processes: Rent-seeking, Lobbying, Elections, Legislatures, and Voting Behavior
Job, Occupational, and Intergenerational Mobility; Promotion
Economic History: Labor and Consumers, Demography, Education, Health, Welfare, Income, Wealth, Religion, and Philanthropy: U.S.; Canada: Pre-1913
- Subject
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wealth inequality
elites and development
US South
intergenerational persistence
slavery
- Event
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Geistige Schöpfung
- (who)
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Bellani, Luna
Hager, Anselm
Maurer, Stephan
- Event
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Veröffentlichung
- (who)
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Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)
- (where)
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Bonn
- (when)
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2020
- Handle
- Last update
-
10.03.2025, 11:45 AM CET
Data provider
This object is provided by:
ZBW - Deutsche Zentralbibliothek für Wirtschaftswissenschaften - Leibniz-Informationszentrum Wirtschaft. If you have any questions about the object, please contact the data provider.
ZBW - Deutsche Zentralbibliothek für Wirtschaftswissenschaften - Leibniz-Informationszentrum Wirtschaft. If you have any questions about the object, please contact the data provider.
Object type
- Arbeitspapier
Associated
- Bellani, Luna
- Hager, Anselm
- Maurer, Stephan
- Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)
Time of origin
- 2020
Other Objects (12)
The Long Shadow of Slavery : The Persistence of Slave Owners in Southern Law-Making
The Long Shadow of Slavery : The Persistence of Slave Owners in Southern Law-Making
Mastering Slavery : memory, family, and identity in women's slave narratives
When Cape Slavery Ended: Evidence from a New Slave Emancipation Dataset
The lost continent, or slavery and the slave-trade in Africa, 1875
Up the River: International Slave Trades and the Transformations of Slavery in Africa
Slaves of the people : a political and social history of Roman public slavery
Women's Bodies and Slavery in 16th Century Spain: The Sale of Juana, a Sick Slave
Beyond Exceptionalism : Traces of Slavery and the Slave Trade in Early Modern Germany, 1650–1850
Beyond Exceptionalism : Traces of Slavery and the Slave Trade in Early Modern Germany, 1650–1850
Beyond exceptionalism : traces of slavery and the slave trade in early modern Germany, 1650-1850
Slavery (Hindu).
The Long Shadow of Slavery : The Persistence of Slave Owners in Southern Law-Making
The Long Shadow of Slavery : The Persistence of Slave Owners in Southern Law-Making
Mastering Slavery : memory, family, and identity in women's slave narratives
When Cape Slavery Ended: Evidence from a New Slave Emancipation Dataset
The lost continent, or slavery and the slave-trade in Africa, 1875
Up the River: International Slave Trades and the Transformations of Slavery in Africa
Slaves of the people : a political and social history of Roman public slavery
Women's Bodies and Slavery in 16th Century Spain: The Sale of Juana, a Sick Slave
Beyond Exceptionalism : Traces of Slavery and the Slave Trade in Early Modern Germany, 1650–1850
Beyond Exceptionalism : Traces of Slavery and the Slave Trade in Early Modern Germany, 1650–1850
Beyond exceptionalism : traces of slavery and the slave trade in early modern Germany, 1650-1850
Slavery (Hindu).
The Long Shadow of Slavery : The Persistence of Slave Owners in Southern Law-Making
The Long Shadow of Slavery : The Persistence of Slave Owners in Southern Law-Making
Mastering Slavery : memory, family, and identity in women's slave narratives
When Cape Slavery Ended: Evidence from a New Slave Emancipation Dataset
The lost continent, or slavery and the slave-trade in Africa, 1875
Up the River: International Slave Trades and the Transformations of Slavery in Africa
Slaves of the people : a political and social history of Roman public slavery
Women's Bodies and Slavery in 16th Century Spain: The Sale of Juana, a Sick Slave
Beyond Exceptionalism : Traces of Slavery and the Slave Trade in Early Modern Germany, 1650–1850
Beyond Exceptionalism : Traces of Slavery and the Slave Trade in Early Modern Germany, 1650–1850
Beyond exceptionalism : traces of slavery and the slave trade in early modern Germany, 1650-1850