No wheat crisis: trade liberalization and transportation innovation in Quebec during the 1830s and 1840s

Abstract In the first half of the nineteenth century, the wheat oriented agrarian economy of Lower Canada saw a rapid collapse in wheat production. These developments have been blamed on factors ranging from soil exhaustion to cultural conservatism and used to infer falling living standards in the c...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:European review of economic history 2023-11, Vol.27 (4), p.560-580
Main Authors: Geloso, Vincent, Plemmons, Alicia, Thomas, Andrew
Format: Article
Language:English
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Abstract In the first half of the nineteenth century, the wheat oriented agrarian economy of Lower Canada saw a rapid collapse in wheat production. These developments have been blamed on factors ranging from soil exhaustion to cultural conservatism and used to infer falling living standards in the colony. We provide evidence suggesting this collapse was largely the result of adjustment to the trade shock that followed the Colonial Trade Act of 1831 and a rapid reduction in freight costs between the Canadian colonies. Areas more exposed to external markets—as proxied by road access—shifted away from wheat production.
ISSN:1361-4916
1474-0044
DOI:10.1093/ereh/head004