History Commons^™

Supply, Demand, And The Making Of A Market: Philadelphia And Havana At The Beginning Of The Nineteenth Century, Linda Salvucci

Linda K Salvucci

In his 1984 assessment of the state of historical research, "The Transatlantic Economy," Jacob Price comments: "The writing of most early American economic history has concentrated upon supply. For many branches of the economy, the great unexplored frontier may well be demand." The relationship between Philadelphia and Havana is a case in point. From the onset of the American Revolution until well past the end of the Napoleonic Wars, the port cities of Havana and Philadelphia were inextricably linked. As their own rich hinterlands expanded, and as established transatlantic trade routes disintegrated, Havana and Philadelphia grew ever closer, exerting profound …