This working paper explores the significant contributions to the history of African-American slavery made by the … explicit use of economic theory and quantitative methods. American slavery of the late antebellum period [1840-1860] was one of …

proximately concerned the geographical expansion of slavery, but ultimately bore on the existence of the institution of slavery … itself. This paper asks why in 1861 after seventy years of artful compromises over slavery civil conflict became unavoidable … historical analysis the paper concludes that in the years leading up to 1861 the outcome of the dispute over slavery had become …