Representation and Taxation in the American South, 1820–1910
We explain and document state-level fiscal developments in American Southern states from 1820–1910, focusing on their main source of revenue, progressive property taxes borne primarily by economic elites. The fourteen states in our analysis were characterized by severe economic exploitation of the e...
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| Main Author | |
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| Format | eBook |
| Language | English |
| Published |
Cambridge University Press
21.12.2023
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| Series | Elements in Political Economy |
| Subjects | |
| Online Access | Get full text |
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| Summary: | We explain and document state-level fiscal developments in American Southern states from 1820–1910, focusing on their main source of revenue, progressive property taxes borne primarily by economic elites. The fourteen states in our analysis were characterized by severe economic exploitation of the enslaved and later politically repressed African-descended population by a small rural elite, who dominated the region both politically and economically. While rural elites are thought to be especially resistant to taxation, we offer a set of conditions that explains the emergence of progressive taxation and provides a coherent account of the fiscal development of these states over this period. Using an original, archival data set of annual tax revenues and select expenditure items, we show that the economic interests of these rural elites and the extent of their formal (over)representation played a critical role in shaping the observed fiscal patterns within and across these states over this period. This title is also available as Open Access on Cambridge Core. |
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| ISBN: | 1009454056 9781009114080 9781009454056 1009114085 1009122827 9781009122825 |
| DOI: | 10.1017/9781009122825 |