1st Edition

The Economic Development of Canada

By Richard Pomfret Copyright 1981
    232 Pages
    by Routledge

    232 Pages
    by Routledge

    First Published in 2005. The aim of this book is to provide an introduction to and interpretation of the development of the Canadian economy since European settlement. The main contrast between the book’s view and previous interpretations of Canada’s economic past is that, instead of emphasizing the continuity of Canadian economic development (with staple exports playing the leading role), the focus is on the transition from the sparsely populated colonial economy of the early nineteenth century to the modern economy ranking among the seven largest market economies whose leaders now meet for economic summits.

    ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF CANADA: R POMFRET:

    Contents

    Preface, vii

    Chapter 1: Introduction, 1

    Chapter 2: Economic Development prior to 1850, 7

    1. The Early Staples, 7

    2. Colonial Rivalries, 13

    3. American independence, 17

    4. The Aftermath of 1783, 20

    5. The Timber Trade, 24

    6. The Struggle for the Second Empire of the St. Lawrence, 26

    Appendix: Meanwhile in the West, 28

    Chapter 3: Alternative Approaches to Canadian Economic Development, 33

    1. The Staple Theory, 33

    2. A Marxian Approach, 39

    3. Rostow’s "Stages of Economic Growth," 41

    4. Other Approaches, 44

    5. Conclusions, 46

    Chapter 4: The Statistical Evidence on Canadian Economic Growth, 47

    1. The Quality of Canadian Census Data, 47

    2. Population, 49

    3. Output, 53

    4. Capital Formation, 56

    5. Other Data, 59

    6. Testing Theories of Canadian Economic Development, 62

    Appendix: The "Sources of Growth" in Canada, 65

    Chapter 5: Government Policy, 68

    1. Commercial Policy, 68

    2. Railway Policy, 94

    3. Land Policy, 111

    4. The Government’s Development Strategy: An Overview, 119

    Chapter 6: The Industrialization of Central Canada, 1850–1914, 122

    1. The Beginnings of Modern Industry, 122

    2. Two Manufacturing Industries of the 1560s, 125

    3. The 1879 Tariff and Industrial Development, 132

    4. Industrial Concentration and Combines Policy, 135

    5. Direct Foreign Investment, 140

    6. The Naylor Thesis, 142

    7. Conclusions, 145

    Chapter 7: The Prairie Wheat Economy, 147

    1. Chronology, 147

    2. The Farmers versus Monopoly Power, 149

    3. The Marketing of Wheat, 152

    4. Farm Credit, 155

    Appendix: The Wheat Boom’s Contribution to Economic Growth, 157

    Chapter 8: The Financial System, 165

    1. Early Financial Problems, 165

    2. Free Banking versus Chartered Banks, 170

    3. The Decline and Rise of the Chartered Banks, 172

    4. Central Banking, 176

    5. Conclusions, 177

    Chapter 9: Business Cycles, 179

    1. Course of the Business Cycle and its Domestic Causes, 179

    2. Relation to Other Countries’ Business Cycles, 181

    3. The Depression of the 1930s, 183

    Chapter 10: Regional Variations in Economic Development, 189

    1. Changing Patterns of Regional Leadership, 159

    2. The Location of Industry, 192

    3. The Development of Metropolitan Centres, 196

    Chapter 11: Conclusions, 200

    Bibliography, 203

    Index, 211

    List of Maps

    Map 1. Canada, 1873, 6

    Map 2. North America, 1713 15

    Map 3. Quebec, 1774, 20

    Map 4. British North America, 1783–1825, 22

    Map 5. British Columbia in the Early 1860s, 31

    Map 6. Railways in Canada before 1867, 98

    Map 7. Montreal and Rail Routes to the Sea, 103

    Biography

    Pomfret, Richard