Rip Van Winkle's Neighbors: The Transformation of Rural Society in the Hudson River Valley, 1720–1850. By Thomas S. Wermuth. Albany: State University of New York Press, 2001. Pp.vii,186. $17.95, paper.

Extract

For some time now historians have engaged in an ongoing debate concerning the nature of the early American economy. Some contend that from the outset, producers were motivated by private gain, responded to commercial opportunities, and were driven by an entrepreneurial spirit. Another school emphasizes the limited extent of the markets, the importance of “community” concerns, and the existence of local trade and labor systems based on social relationships and cultural expectations that inhibited the free play of market forces. Ultimately, the market system prevailed and the questions for economic historians become when and how this transition occurred.