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Title: Birthing a Nation: The Effect of Fertility Control Access on the 19th Century Demographic Transition

Citation Type: Miscellaneous

Publication Year: 2009

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Abstract: During the 19th century, the US birthrate fell by half. While previous economic literature has emphasized demand-side explanations for this declinethat rising land prices and literacy caused a decrease in demand for childrenhistorians and others haveemphasized changes in the supply of technologies to control fertility, including abortion and birth control. In this paper I exploit the introduction during the 19th century of statelaws governing American womens access to abortion to measure the effect of changes in the supply of fertility technologies on the number of children born. I estimate an increasein the birthrate of 3 to 11% when abortion is restricted, which lies within the ranges of estimates found for the effect of fertility control supply restrictions on birthrates today.The importance of legal abortion in reducing 19th-century birthrates demonstrates helps to account for a previously unexplained portion of the demographic transition. This paper posits that there has long been a demand, often unmet, for fertility control that should beconsidered in future demographic research as well as in policy formulation.

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Authors: Lahey, Joanna N.

Publisher: Texas A&M

Data Collections: IPUMS USA

Topics: Fertility and Mortality

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