Population Turnover in the English West Indies in the Late Seventeenth Century: A Comparative Perspective

B-Tier
Journal: Journal of Economic History
Year: 1985
Volume: 45
Issue: 2
Pages: 227-235

Score contribution per author:

2.011 = (α=2.01 / 1 authors) × 1.0x B-tier

α: calibrated so average coauthorship-adjusted count equals average raw count

Abstract

I present estimates here of the geographic persistence of estate owners and managers in Barbados during 1673–1723. The estimates are based on evidence generated by the functioning of an economic market; the evidence was produced by tracing the names of purchasers over time through the invoice accounts of slave sales held by the Royal African Company on the island.Estimated rates of out-migration from Barbados were low during the 1670s, comparable in magnitude to those found in colonial New England towns, but the rates rose considerably during the following decades. The initially low rates of out-migration might have been the result of the great profitability of sugar planting in early Barbados, while the subsequent increase might have been due to the development of methods of plantation management that allowed estate owners to earn profits as absentees.

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:cup:jechis:v:45:y:1985:i:02:p:227-235_03
Journal Field
Economic History
Author Count
1
Added to Database
2026-01-25