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Wealth Accumulation and the Health of Union Army Veterans, 1860–1870

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 June 2005

CHULHEE LEE
CHULHEE LEE
Affiliation:
Associate Professor, School of Economics, Seoul National University, San 56-1, Sillim-dong, Kwanak-gu, Seoul, Korea. E-mail: chullee@snu.ac.kr.
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Abstract

How did the wartime health of Union Army recruits affect their wealth accumulation through 1870? Wounds and exposure to combat had strong negative effects on subsequent savings, as did illnesses while in the service. The impact of poor health was particularly strong for unskilled workers. Health was a powerful determinant of nineteenth-century economic mobility. Infectious diseases' influences on wealth accumulation suggest that the economic gains from the improvement of the disease environment should be enormous. The direct economic costs of the Civil War were probably much greater than previously thought, given the persistent adverse health effects of wartime experiences.

Type
ARTICLES
Information
The Journal of Economic History , Volume 65 , Issue 2 , June 2005 , pp. 352 - 385
Copyright
© 2005 The Economic History Association

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