Price Fishback

This is Today Explained. So I'm Price Fishback. I am a Regents Professor and APS Professor of Economics at the University of Arizona.

This is Today Explained. So I'm Price Fishback. I am a Regents Professor and APS Professor of Economics at the University of Arizona.

This is Today Explained. So I'm Price Fishback. I am a Regents Professor and APS Professor of Economics at the University of Arizona.

I do. I wrote a dissertation and a bunch of articles about company towns and company housing and violent strikes and all sorts of things like that.

I do. I wrote a dissertation and a bunch of articles about company towns and company housing and violent strikes and all sorts of things like that.

I do. I wrote a dissertation and a bunch of articles about company towns and company housing and violent strikes and all sorts of things like that.

Well, so there was a really nice article written in the Bureau of Labor Statistics Bulletin back in 1919 by a guy named Liefer Magnusson. And so he'd done a survey of about 213 companies that had towns. And so one of the major reasons they had, and what he talks about in the article, is isolation. You're just out in the middle of nowhere.

Well, so there was a really nice article written in the Bureau of Labor Statistics Bulletin back in 1919 by a guy named Liefer Magnusson. And so he'd done a survey of about 213 companies that had towns. And so one of the major reasons they had, and what he talks about in the article, is isolation. You're just out in the middle of nowhere.

Well, so there was a really nice article written in the Bureau of Labor Statistics Bulletin back in 1919 by a guy named Liefer Magnusson. And so he'd done a survey of about 213 companies that had towns. And so one of the major reasons they had, and what he talks about in the article, is isolation. You're just out in the middle of nowhere.

And if you're out in the middle of nowhere, there's nobody else that's going to really come and build something. And if they do come and build something like build housing or create a store, then they're going to have pretty much monopoly. And then you're going to run into problems where they're going to charge high prices and high rents. And now you have to pay higher wages to get people to come.

And if you're out in the middle of nowhere, there's nobody else that's going to really come and build something. And if they do come and build something like build housing or create a store, then they're going to have pretty much monopoly. And then you're going to run into problems where they're going to charge high prices and high rents. And now you have to pay higher wages to get people to come.

And if you're out in the middle of nowhere, there's nobody else that's going to really come and build something. And if they do come and build something like build housing or create a store, then they're going to have pretty much monopoly. And then you're going to run into problems where they're going to charge high prices and high rents. And now you have to pay higher wages to get people to come.

And so, you know, it's kind of made sense to vertically integrate the whole thing. And just, you know, you're out in the middle of nowhere. You need housing. You need these things. And so let's just build it and bring them there.

And so, you know, it's kind of made sense to vertically integrate the whole thing. And just, you know, you're out in the middle of nowhere. You need housing. You need these things. And so let's just build it and bring them there.

And so, you know, it's kind of made sense to vertically integrate the whole thing. And just, you know, you're out in the middle of nowhere. You need housing. You need these things. And so let's just build it and bring them there.

Yes, it can be.

Yes, it can be.

Yes, it can be.

So you have all sorts of different types of employers. Some of them are very community-minded and things like that, and they have other guys just trying to make money. And so the range of conditions in company towns was pretty wide. A lot of times they're trying to get started. So if they're trying to hire 100 employees or 200 employees, they need to build housing pretty quickly.

So you have all sorts of different types of employers. Some of them are very community-minded and things like that, and they have other guys just trying to make money. And so the range of conditions in company towns was pretty wide. A lot of times they're trying to get started. So if they're trying to hire 100 employees or 200 employees, they need to build housing pretty quickly.