Politics and property rights : the closing of the open range in the postbellum South / Shawn Everett Kantor.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Kantor, Shawn Everett.

Series:

Studies in law and economics (Chicago, Ill.)

Studies in law and economics

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Rangelands--Southern States--History.

Rangelands.

Inclosures--Southern States--History.

Inclosures.

Right of property--Southern States--History.

Right of property.

Pasture, Right of--Southern States--History.

Pasture, Right of.

Grazing--Political aspects--Southern States--History.

Grazing.

Fences--Southern States--History.

Fences.

Law and economics--History.

Law and economics.

History.

Southern States.

Physical Description:

x, 187 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm.

Place of Publication:

Chicago : University of Chicago Press, 1998.

Summary:

After the American Civil War, agricultural reformers in the South called for an end to unrestricted grazing of livestock on unfenced land. They advocated tire stock law, which required livestock owners to fence in their animals, arguing that the existing system (in which farmers built protective fences around crops) was outdated and inhibited economic growth. The reformers steadily won their battles, and by the end of the century the range was on the way to being closed.

In this original study, Kantor uses economic analysis to show that, contrary to traditional historical interpretation, this conflict was centered on anticipated benefits from fencing livestock rather than on class, cultural, or ideological differences. Kantor proves that the stock law brought economic benefits; at the same time, he analyzes why the law's adoption was hindered in many areas where it would have increased wealth. This argument illuminates the dynamics of real-world institutional change, where transactions are often costly and where some inefficient institutions persist while others give way to economic growth.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 173-182) and index.

ISBN:

0226423751

0226423778

OCLC:

37132581