Eric Melander
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ericmelander.bsky.social
Eric Melander
@ericmelander.bsky.social
970 followers 620 following 2 posts
Lecturer in Economics, University of Birmingham.
Economic history & political economy.
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Reposted by Eric Melander
rickhornbeck.bsky.social
Hi all, please spread the word and we hope everyone can make good use of this new data drop: cmfdata.org

The full surviving establishment-level Census of Manufactures manuscripts and digitized data from 1850, 1860, 1870, and 1880!
Historical Census of Manufactures Microdata - Historical Census of Manufactures Microdata
CMFdata.org
November 6, 2025 at 5:18 PM
Reposted by Eric Melander
cagewarwick.bsky.social
Until the 18th century, navigation across the open seas was perilous. Sailors could travel long distances but faced an impossible task determining their position.🧭

Martina Miotto offers a new perspective for #Advantage on the way an advanced clock transformed global trade. 📰
buff.ly/ghuvypN
September 22, 2025 at 10:34 AM
ericmelander.bsky.social
VoxEU column now up for my paper on "Wars, Taxation and Representation" with @essobecker.bsky.social, @andyferrara.bsky.social and @luigipascali.bsky.social.

Full paper available here:
doi.org/10.1093/jeea...
voxeu.org VoxEU @ CEPR @voxeu.org · Jul 17
@essobecker.bsky.social, Andreas Ferrara, @ericmelander.bsky.social‬, & @luigipascali.bsky.social explore how wars played a crucial role in the emergence of the blueprints for modern states in #Europe as conflict forced rulers to strike bargains with their subjects.
cepr.org/voxeu/column...
#EconSky
In the grand sweep of history over the last millennium, political divergence between Europe and contemporaneous world civilisations preceded economic divergence. This column describes how the development of the institutional frameworks of medieval constitutionalism – characterised by representative assemblies, rule of law, and substantial fiscal and spending capacity – in European towns and cities paved the way for Western modern states. In a current international climate where democratic institutions increasingly appear to be on the back foot, history offers a sobering perspective on the hard-fought moves towards greater representation.
July 17, 2025 at 12:27 PM
Reposted by Eric Melander
zoejardiniere.bsky.social
Great discussion on latest figures of people crossing the Channel in small boats, & how hostility towards them has us caught in a doom-loop that prevents the sane, humane management of immigration #r4today

Thank you @bylinetimespod.bsky.social 😊
July 2, 2025 at 7:14 AM
Reposted by Eric Melander
cagewarwick.bsky.social
“.. welfare cuts are felt most strongly by those who are already economically vulnerable and can therefore exacerbate existing inequalities.” Research by @ericmelander.bsky.social and Martina Miotto analyses the impact of the 1834 reforms – the largest welfare cut in British history. buff.ly/5CdCJWw
The impact of welfare reforms - lessons from history
Many in opposition to the government's proposed welfare cuts describe the bill as 'Dickensian' and 'from another era'. While the debate continues, we highlight the work of CAGE Research Associates Eri...
warwick.ac.uk
July 3, 2025 at 1:42 PM
Reposted by Eric Melander
jeeanews.bsky.social
Forthcoming article by @essobecker.bsky.social @andyferrara.bsky.social @ericmelander.bsky.social @luigipascali.bsky.social "Wars, Taxation and Representation: Evidence from Five Centuries of German History" @eeanews.bsky.social

doi.org/10.1093/jeea...
Wars, Taxation and Representation: Evidence from Five Centuries of German History
Abstract. We provide causal evidence for the role of warfare in the development of medieval constitutionalism. Using novel data on the universe of German c
doi.org
July 1, 2025 at 5:56 AM
ericmelander.bsky.social
Excited for Volume 2 of the Second City History and Economics Meeting (SCHEMe), taking place over the next two days at @unibirmingham.bsky.social!
June 12, 2025 at 8:16 AM
Reposted by Eric Melander
romainwacziarg.bsky.social
My new paper with @guillaumeblanc.bsky.social is out as an NBER Working Paper. Demographic pressures have had lasting effects on the spread of diasporas. Malthusian migrations contributed to sustained improvements in living standards in Europe in the 19th century. www.nber.org/papers/w33542
Malthusian Migrations
Founded in 1920, the NBER is a private, non-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to conducting economic research and to disseminating research findings among academics, public policy makers, an...
www.nber.org
March 11, 2025 at 12:04 AM
Reposted by Eric Melander
essobecker.bsky.social
🚨 New Working Paper 🚨

w/ @pdavidboll.bsky.social and @jvoth.bsky.social

Do you run regressions on spatial data? Then keep reading!

We present a guide and Stata package for methods by Müller and Watson (2024 ECTA) to deal with Spatial Unit Roots in Regressions.

Link in 🧵 (1/n)
January 22, 2025 at 12:38 PM
Reposted by Eric Melander
florianederer.bsky.social
Move over WORMS, there is a new contender for SHORTEST ECON PAPER TITLE OF ALL TIME.
December 16, 2024 at 7:18 PM
Reposted by Eric Melander
resmedia.bsky.social
📣FOUR WEEKS LEFT - Don't miss the deadline for the #RES2025 Annual Conference Call for Submissions!

⏰Deadline 13 January 2025
👉 bit.ly/4hku5q7

#EconSky #EconEvents #RESEvents #RESConference #EconPhD
December 12, 2024 at 10:02 AM
Reposted by Eric Melander
novosad.bsky.social
Last, this is why descriptive work is underrated.

No preposterous IV, no incomprehensible structural black box, there is just a new fact about the world.

If the descriptive work is done well — and it is not easy — the fact permanently enters everyone's headspace and must be contended with.
December 6, 2024 at 7:19 PM
Reposted by Eric Melander
danaeac.bsky.social
Hi Bluesky! 👋
You can connect with colleagues at my dept (Economics @unibirmingham.bsky.social) here: go.bsky.app/8UwyriL
November 26, 2024 at 3:06 PM
Reposted by Eric Melander
essobecker.bsky.social
Today and tomorrow we will celebrate the life and work of the late Nick Crafts ❤️

Nick was a fantastic colleague, friend, and founding director of @cagewarwick.bsky.social

Today's Crafts Lecture will be given by the wonderful Leah Boustan.

Full program 👇

warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/econ...
November 20, 2024 at 8:08 AM
Reposted by Eric Melander
guillaumeblanc.bsky.social
Going to give this website a try - with a new profile picture! Definitely feels like an econ bubble, but I guess that’s the point.

Expect a thread on my newest work, Malthusian Migrations (with @romainwacziarg.bsky.social), soon! 🚨

www.guillaumeblanc.com/files/theme/...
November 19, 2024 at 5:20 PM
Reposted by Eric Melander
benmschneider.bsky.social
Re-sharing the #econhist Starter Pack for new arrivals:

go.bsky.app/U6KyhNv
November 10, 2024 at 12:10 PM
Reposted by Eric Melander
dynarski.bsky.social
Holy crap this is an astounding piece of historical research

Will post ungated link later today unless someone beats me to it

www.nber.org/system/files...
The G.I. Bill, Standardized Testing, and Socioeconomic Origins of the U.S. Educational Elite Over a Century Ran Abramitzky, Jennifer K. Kowalski, Santiago Pérez, and Joseph Price NBER Working Paper No. 33164 November 2024 JEL No. 123, 124, N32 ABSTRACT We compile, transcribe, and standardize historical records for 2.5 million students at 65 elite (private and public) U.S. colleges. By combining these data with more recent survey and administrative data, we assemble the largest dataset on the socioeconomic backgrounds of students at American colleges spanning the last 100 years. We document the following: First, despite a large increase in the share of lower-income students in the overall college-going population, the representation of these students at elite private or public colleges has remained at similarly low levels throughout the last century. Second, the representation of upper-income students at elite colleges decreased after World War II, but this group has regained its high representation since the 1980s. Third, while there has been no increase in the economic diversity of elite private and public colleges, these colleges have become more racially and geographically diverse. Fourth, two major policy changes in the history of American higher education, namely the G.I. Bill after World War II and the introduction of standardized tests for admissions, had little success in increasing the representation of lower- and middle-income students at elite colleges.
November 18, 2024 at 12:47 PM