Inventing the U.S. stove industry, c. 1815-1875: making and selling the first universal consumer durable

Harris, Howell John

doi:10.1017/s0007680500063170

Inventing the U.S. stove industry, c. 1815-1875: making and selling the first universal consumer durable

Harris, Howell John

Authors

Howell John Harris

Abstract

This article examines the emergence of the American stove industry, detailing the complex interactions among changes in the product, the organization of production, and the methods of selling cast-iron heating and cooking equipment to consumers nationwide, particularly in the antebellum years. This highly competitive industry, composed of hundreds of proprietary firms, became a site of considerable innovation in marketing. Manufacturers integrated forward, controlling the sale and distribution of their goods through networks of small retailers nationwide. The article explains how and why.

Citation

Harris, H. J. (2008). Inventing the U.S. stove industry, c. 1815-1875: making and selling the first universal consumer durable. Business History Review, 82(4), 701-733. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0007680500063170

Journal Article Type	Article
Publication Date	Jan 1, 2008
Deposit Date	Jan 10, 2011
Publicly Available Date	Mar 27, 2013
Journal	Business History Review
Print ISSN	0007-6805
Publisher	Cambridge University Press
Peer Reviewed	Peer Reviewed
Volume	82
Issue	4
Pages	701-733
DOI	https://doi.org/10.1017/s0007680500063170
Keywords	Stoves, Consumer durables, Distribution networks.
Publisher URL	http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1353442

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Copyright Statement
Copyright © The President and Fellows of Harvard College 2008. This paper has been published by Cambridge University Press in 'Business history review' (82: 4 (2008) 701-733) http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayJournal?jid=BHR