Nineteenth century English and Welsh geographic labor mobility: Some further evidence

Abstract

In a recent issue of this journal, Greenwood and Thomas (G-T) estimated determinants of intercounty migration in England and Wales for 1861, using regression analysis. Coincidently, we performed a similar analysis using 1851 data. As with G-T, we conclude that migrants were sensitive to economic considerations in making their locational choice. Both sets of results are remarkably similar with respect to the pronounced sensitivity of migrants to movement costs, as measured by distance. Unlike G-T, however, we generally observe significantly positive relationships between migration and wage levels in the destination county. Also, our results suggest that migrants were less responsive to job opportunity considerations than those of G-T. Furthermore, we conclude that migrants,ceteris paribus, tended to move to sunnier counties and to be somewhat responsive to public assistance payment levels in making their locational choice. Finally, our results suggest that migrants improved their economic status and contributed to British economic growth by their behavioral patterns.