YSI – Economic History Graduate Webinar: Katherine Hauck

Katherine Hauck, PhD Candidate at the University of Arizona, will present her work: *Farm Production in Purchased and Homesteaded Farms in Kansas, circa 1870 *

Abstract:
The Homestead Act of 1862 greatly reduced the cost of federal land in the United States. Farm productivity is a function of settler characteristics at the individual level and land characteristics at the farm level. After controlling for farm-level land characteristics and individual settler characteristics, I use farm output per acre in 1870 as a proxy for farming ability and objectives. I use the method of acquisition (purchase or homestead) of neighboring farms as an IV to identify the effect of the initial method of acquisition on the subsequent value of farm production per acre in Kansas in 1870. Results show that purchasers and homesteaders used different farming strategies. Homesteaders had significantly lower productivity than purchasers before 1863, even after controlling for the length of time the farm was held, reflecting their lower risk from the lower cost of starting a farm. Purchasers after 1863 initial invested in fences and buildings, while homesteaders initially invested in crops and livestock. After 18 months after acquisition, the purchasers who remained on the land were both more productive and had a more valuable farm than homesteaders who remained. However, in the first 18 months, homesteaders were significantly more productive than purchasers, despite having a less developed farm. Purchasers initially held the land without farming it but did make improvements in terms of buildings and fences. This analysis indicates that purchasers and homesteaders diverged immediately after acquisition onto different pathways with different farming strategies. Finally, I explore several potential mechanisms for
this difference.