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The impact of military forts on agricultural investments on the Great Plains in 1880

Author

Listed:
  • Decker, Christopher
  • Flynn, David

Abstract

We empirically investigate the relationship between agricultural development and proximity to military forts in Kansas, Nebraska, and Colorado in 1880. Agricultural investments are substantially higher in counties where a military fort is present, suggesting that military forts stimulated agricultural development on the Great Plains. However, the reverse is not true; there is no statistical support for the notion that forts necessarily located in counties where substantial development was already occurring. Moreover, we found that while the presence of a military fort has the effect of increasing agricultural development, there is no evidence that such a presence sustained agricultural development.

Suggested Citation

  • Decker, Christopher & Flynn, David, 2009. "The impact of military forts on agricultural investments on the Great Plains in 1880," MPRA Paper 19556, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    • Handle: RePEc:pra:mprapa:19556
    as

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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Christopher S. Decker & David T. Flynn, 2004. "The Railroad’s Impact on Land Values in the Upper Great Plains at the Closing of the Frontier," Economic History 0408001, University Library of Munich, Germany.
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    7. Kanazawa, Mark, 2006. "Investment in private water development: Property rights and contractual opportunism during the California Gold Rush," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 43(2), pages 357-381, April.
    8. Craig, Lee A & Palmquist, Raymond B & Weiss, Thomas, 1998. "Transportation Improvements and Land Values in the Antebellum United States: A Hedonic Approach," The Journal of Real Estate Finance and Economics, Springer, vol. 16(2), pages 173-189, March.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Forts; Great Plains; Agriculture;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • N51 - Economic History - - Agriculture, Natural Resources, Environment and Extractive Industries - - - U.S.; Canada: Pre-1913
    • R53 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Regional Government Analysis - - - Public Facility Location Analysis; Public Investment and Capital Stock
    • R11 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General Regional Economics - - - Regional Economic Activity: Growth, Development, Environmental Issues, and Changes
    • N91 - Economic History - - Regional and Urban History - - - U.S.; Canada: Pre-1913

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