Migration in a Mature Economy: Emigration and Internal Migration in

In this review of Migration in a Mature Economy the reviewer finds a rigorous, data-driven study suited to historians, demographers and students of 19th-century Britain. Dudley Baines presents a novel method for estimating the county of birth for roughly 2.3 million permanent emigrants from England and Wales in the late 19th century, and the book's single biggest strength is its systematic link between migration timing and the social and economic profile of counties. This makes the work essential for anyone seeking evidence-based answers to long-standing questions about English and Welsh emigration patterns.

Key Features

• Comprehensive estimation method: Baines outlines a repeatable technique to estimate county of birth for about 2.3 million emigrants, enabling regional comparison across decades.
• County-level analysis: The book relates migration rates and timing to the social and economic characteristics of individual counties, which clarifies local drivers of emigration.
• Focus on urban origins: The study argues that about half of emigrants had only known life in a large town, which reframes assumptions about rural-only outmigration.
• Addresses major historiographical questions: The text examines ideas such as the 'Atlantic Economy' and the distinctiveness of Welsh migration, providing evidence for scholarly debate.
• Concentrating on the last four decades of the nineteenth century gives readers a clear view of how patterns evolved over time.

Who It's For

This book is aimed at academic readers, postgraduate students and professional researchers interested in historical migration, population studies and regional economic history of Great Britain. Its methodological emphasis and county-level data make it particularly useful for anyone conducting comparative or quantitative historical work.

Readers seeking a popular narrative, travelogue or memoir of emigration will want a different, more anecdotal account; this is a specialist study that assumes some familiarity with historical demography and economic history.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• The methodological approach supplies a large-scale, reproducible estimate for county of birth across millions of emigrants.
• Clear linkage of migration timing with county social and economic characteristics strengthens causal interpretation.
• The finding that many emigrants originated in large towns challenges simple rural-periphery narratives and enriches debate about urban migration.

Cons

• The specialised, data-focused presentation may be dense for general readers or those without background in demography.

Specifications

Title	Migration in a Mature Economy: Emigration and Internal Migration in England and Wales 1861-1900
Author	Dudley Baines
Series	Cambridge Studies in Population, Economy and Society in Past Time, Series Number 3
Coverage period	1861-1900 (last four decades of the nineteenth century)
Estimated emigrants analysed	Approximately 2.3 million permanent emigrants
Geographic focus	England and Wales, county-level analysis

Our Verdict

Migration in a Mature Economy is a well-documented, methodical contribution to the study of British emigration; it is well worth acquiring for researchers and advanced students because it provides robust county-level estimates and challenges conventional views about the social origins of emigrants, offering strong value for academic study.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does the book cover both England and Wales?
Yes, the research explicitly covers England and Wales and examines county-level differences across both nations.

What time period does the study analyse?
The analysis focuses on the last four decades of the nineteenth century, covering roughly 1861 to 1900.

Is this book suitable for non-specialist readers?
While informative, the book is specialised and data-heavy, so general readers seeking narrative histories may prefer a different title.