The Economic Impact of Disease in the American South, 1860–1940
研究1860-1940年间美国南方慢性疾病对农业生产率的影响，发现沙土地区在战后产出最低而1910年后增长最快，对经济史和农业经济学研究者有参考价值。
Few economic historians have addressed the impact of poor health on economic productivity. 1 This relationship, neglected and poorly understood, is the subject of my dissertation. Specifically, the dissertation examines the effect of a chronic debilitating disease on agricultural productivity in the American South between 1860 and 1940. As is well known, per capita gross agricultural output dropped sharply during the Civil War decade and remained low until 1910. Contrary to what one would expect, between 1870 and 1910 agricultural output was lowest in sandy soil regions and highest in regions composed mostly of clay soil. A rapid expansion of per capita agricultural output occurred after 1910. The income decline of the Civil War decade and subsequent increase of the post-1910 era were also related to soil region, with the greatest income swing occurring in sandy soil regions.