Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/246973 
Year of Publication: 
2013
Series/Report no.: 
EHES Working Papers in Economic History No. 42
Publisher: 
European Historical Economics Society (EHES), s.l.
Abstract: 
This paper uses city-level data to examine the impact of a first wave of railroad construction in Sweden, between 1855 and 1870, from the 19th century until today. We estimate that railroads accounted for 50% of urban growth, 1855-1870. In cities with access to the railroad network, property values were higher, manufacturing employment increased, establishments were larger, and more information was distributed through local post offices. Today, cities with early access to the network are 62% larger and to be found 11 steps higher in the urban hierarchy, compared to initially similar cities. We hypothesize that railroads set in motion a path dependent process that shapes the economic geography of Sweden today.
Subjects: 
Railroads
Industrialization
Urban Growth
Path Dependence
JEL: 
N73
N93
R12
R40
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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