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New Deal Regulation and the Revolution in American Farm Productivity. A Case Study of the Diffusion of the Tractor in the Corn Ielt, 1920–1940

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  • Clarke, Sally

Abstract

Based on the cost savings of tractors relative to horses, nearly twice as many farmers in the Corn Belt should have invested in tractors as actually did so in the 1920s. During the Great Depression, however, the proportion of farmers owning tractors jumped from 25 to 40 percent. I argue that financial barriers explain farmers' reluctance to buy this expensive invention during the 1920s, while two New Deal regulatory agencies altered farmers' investment climate and spurred the adoption of capital equipment.

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  • Clarke, Sally, 1991. "New Deal Regulation and the Revolution in American Farm Productivity. A Case Study of the Diffusion of the Tractor in the Corn Ielt, 1920–1940," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 51(1), pages 101-123, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:cup:jechis:v:51:y:1991:i:01:p:101-123_03
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    Cited by:

    1. Takeshima, Hiroyuki, 2015. "Market imperfections for tractor service provision in Nigeria: International perspectives and empirical evidence:," IFPRI discussion papers 1424, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    2. Rodolfo E. Manuelli & Ananth Seshadri, 2014. "Frictionless Technology Diffusion: The Case of Tractors," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 104(4), pages 1368-1391, April.
    3. Daniel P. Gross, 2018. "Scale versus scope in the diffusion of new technology: evidence from the farm tractor," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 49(2), pages 427-452, June.

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