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Coal and the Industrial Revolution, 1700-1869

Author

Listed:
  • Gregory Clark
  • David Jacks

    (Department of Economics, University of California Davis)

Abstract

How important was coal to the Industrial Revolution? Despite the hugegrowth of output, and the grip of coal and steam on the popular image ofthe Industrial Revolution, recent cliometric accounts have assumed coalmining mattered little to the Industrial Revolution. In contrast both E. A.Wrigley and Kenneth Pomeranz have made coal central to the story. Thispaper constructs new series on coal rents, the price of coal at pithead and atmarket, and the price of firewood, and uses them to examine this issue. Weconclude coal output expanded in the Industrial Revolution mainly as aresult of increased demand rather than technological innovations in mining.But that expansion could have occurred at any time before 1760. Furtherour coal rents series suggests that English possession of coal reserves madea negligible contribution to Industrial Revolution incomes.

Suggested Citation

  • Gregory Clark & David Jacks, 2006. "Coal and the Industrial Revolution, 1700-1869," Working Papers 251, University of California, Davis, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:cda:wpaper:251
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Alex Trew, 2014. "Spatial Takeoff in the First Industrial Revolution," Review of Economic Dynamics, Elsevier for the Society for Economic Dynamics, vol. 17(4), pages 707-725, October.
    2. Alan Fernihough & Kevin Hjortshøj, 2021. "Coal and the European Industrial Revolution," The Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 131(635), pages 1135-1149.
    3. Ralf Meisenzahl & Joel Mokyr, 2011. "The Rate and Direction of Invention in the British Industrial Revolution: Incentives and Institutions," NBER Working Papers 16993, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    4. Gregory Clark, 2006. "What made Britannia great? Did the Industrial Revolution make Britain a World Power?," Working Papers 618, University of California, Davis, Department of Economics.
    5. Gregory Clark, 2006. "What made Britannia great? Did the Industrial Revolution make Britain a World Power?," Working Papers 104, University of California, Davis, Department of Economics.
    6. Sofia Teives Henriques & Paul Sharp, 2016. "The Danish agricultural revolution in an energy perspective: a case of development with few domestic energy sources," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 69(3), pages 844-869, August.
    7. M. Scott Taylor & Juan Moreno Cruz, "undated". "Back to the Future of Green Powered Economies," Working Papers 2014-69, Department of Economics, University of Calgary, revised 29 Sep 2014.
    8. Greasley, David & Hanley, Nicholas & McLaughlin, Eoin & Oxley, Les & Warde, Paul, 2012. "Testing for long-run "sustainability": Genuine Savings estimates for B ritain, 1760-2000," Stirling Economics Discussion Papers 2012-05, University of Stirling, Division of Economics.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    economics; revolution; coal; industrial;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • N53 - Economic History - - Agriculture, Natural Resources, Environment and Extractive Industries - - - Europe: Pre-1913
    • N73 - Economic History - - Economic History: Transport, International and Domestic Trade, Energy, and Other Services - - - Europe: Pre-1913
    • O47 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity - - - Empirical Studies of Economic Growth; Aggregate Productivity; Cross-Country Output Convergence
    • Q32 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Nonrenewable Resources and Conservation - - - Exhaustible Resources and Economic Development
    • Q43 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Energy - - - Energy and the Macroeconomy

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