Working Paper: CEPR ID: DP13660
Authors: Philipp Ager; Leah Boustan; Katherine Eriksson
Abstract: The nullification of slave-based wealth after the US Civil War (1861-65) was one of the largest episodes of wealth compression in history. We document that white southern households with more slave assets lost substantially more wealth by 1870 relative to households with otherwise similar pre-War wealth levels. Yet, the sons of these slaveholders recovered in income and wealth proxies by 1880, in part by shifting into white collar positions and marrying into higher status families. Their pattern of recovery is most consistent with the importance of social networks in facilitating employment opportunities and access to credit.
Keywords: No keywords provided
JEL Codes: N31; N91; J62
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Households with greater slaveholdings (R29) | Households lost 10 to 15 percent less wealth by 1870 (N93) |
| Sons of slaveholders (J79) | Achieved comparable or greater wealth by 1880 (N91) |
| Wealth shock (G59) | Not transmitted to the next generation (Y40) |
| Social networks (Z13) | Facilitated economic recovery for sons of slaveholders (N11) |
| Wealth losses from Sherman's march (N91) | Elite sons managed to recover their economic status (N93) |