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Productivity, Mortality, and Technology in European and US Coal Mining, 1800–1913

In: Standard of Living

Author

Listed:
  • Javier Silvestre

    (Universidad de Zaragoza)

Abstract

European coal production underwent a period of dramatic increase from the early nineteenth century to 1913. A consensus exists, however, for a depiction of the coal industry as, to a high degree, technologically stagnant throughout the long nineteenth century. Macro-inventions, or general-purpose technologies, in fact, appeared at either end of the period. Steam power to drive water pumps and shaft elevators was introduced in the eighteenth century, while the application of mechanical power to different tasks and the electrification of mines were advances that became pervasive in the twentieth century. In the interregnum, therefore, the increase in European coal production would have mainly been the result of adding more labor rather than developing new technology. This paper aims to revise this interpretation. First, long-term series of labor productivity and fatality rates data are presented for the four main coal-producing European nations, Great Britain, Belgium, France, and Germany. Second, a link between improvements in Europe both in productivity and safety in conjunction with a series of “small-scale” technological innovations is proposed. These technologies, which emerged and diffused to affect different aspects of mining production, did not involve huge investments in labor-replacing capital. They were, for the most part, complementary to labor and closely related to questions of safety. A comparison of both estimates, labor productivity and safety, for the European countries is also established with those of the United States, a latecomer to the exploitation of coal resources.

Suggested Citation

  • Javier Silvestre, 2022. "Productivity, Mortality, and Technology in European and US Coal Mining, 1800–1913," Studies in Economic History, in: Patrick Gray & Joshua Hall & Ruth Wallis Herndon & Javier Silvestre (ed.), Standard of Living, chapter 0, pages 345-371, Springer.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:stechp:978-3-031-06477-7_16
    DOI: 10.1007/978-3-031-06477-7_16
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Mokyr, Joel, 2010. "The Contribution of Economic History to the Study of Innovation and Technical Change," Handbook of the Economics of Innovation, in: Bronwyn H. Hall & Nathan Rosenberg (ed.), Handbook of the Economics of Innovation, edition 1, volume 1, chapter 0, pages 11-50, Elsevier.
    2. John E. Murray & Javier Silvestre, 2015. "Small-scale technologies and European coal mine safety, 1850–1900," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 68(3), pages 887-910, August.
    3. G. M.P. Swann, 2009. "The Economics of Innovation," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 13211.
    4. John E. Murray & Javier Silvestre, 2020. "Integration in European coal markets, 1833–1913," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 73(3), pages 668-702, August.
    5. Allen,Robert C., 2009. "The British Industrial Revolution in Global Perspective," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521868273, January.
    6. Roger Fouquet, 2008. "Heat, Power and Light," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 4061.
    7. Boal, William M., 2018. "Work intensity and worker safety in early twentieth-century coal mining," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 70(C), pages 132-149.
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    Cited by:

    1. Javier Silvestre & John E. Murray, 2023. "Determinants in the adoption of a non-labor-substitution technology: mechanical ventilation in West Virginia coal mines, 1898–1907," Cliometrica, Springer;Cliometric Society (Association Francaise de Cliométrie), vol. 17(3), pages 467-500, September.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Long nineteenth-century coal mining; Productivity; Mortality; Technology; Europe; United States;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • N70 - Economic History - - Economic History: Transport, International and Domestic Trade, Energy, and Other Services - - - General, International, or Comparative
    • N50 - Economic History - - Agriculture, Natural Resources, Environment and Extractive Industries - - - General, International, or Comparative
    • N30 - Economic History - - Labor and Consumers, Demography, Education, Health, Welfare, Income, Wealth, Religion, and Philanthropy - - - General, International, or Comparative
    • Q35 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Nonrenewable Resources and Conservation - - - Hydrocarbon Resources
    • O33 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Technological Change: Choices and Consequences; Diffusion Processes

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