The height of Tennessee convicts: another piece of the "antebellum puzzle"

Biological Differences between Late 19th and Early 20th Century Urban and Rural Residence

Communities urbanize when the net benefits to urbanization exceed rural areas. Body mass, height, and weight are biological welfare measures that reflect the net difference between calories consumed and calories required for work and to withstand the physical environment. Individuals of African-decent had greater BMIs, heavier weights, and shorter statures. Urban farmers had lower BMIs, shorter statures, and lower weight than rural farmers. Over the late 19th and early 20th centuries, urban and rural BMIs, height, and weight were constant, and rural farmers had greater BMIs, taller statures, and heavier weights than urban farmers and workers in other occupations.

Height of Male Prisoners in Santiago de Chile during the Nitrate Era: The Penalty of being Unskilled, Illiterate, Illegitimate and Mapuche

This article contributes to the study of inequality in the biological welfare of Chile’s adult population during the nitrate era, ca. 1880s–1930s, and in particular focuses on the impact of socioeconomic variables on height, making use of a sample of over 20,000 male inmates of the capital’s main jail. It shows that inmates with a university degree were taller than the rest; that those born legitimate were taller in adulthood; that those (Chilean born) whose surnames were Northern European were also taller than the rest, and in particular than those with Mapuche background; and that those able to read and write were also taller than illiterate inmates. Conditional regression analysis, examining both correlates at the mean and correlates across the height distribution, supports these findings. We show that there was more height inequality in the population according to socioeconomic status and human capital than previously thought, while also confirming the importance of socioeconomic influences during childhood on physical growth.

Stature in 19th and early 20th century Copenhagen. A comparative study based on skeletal remains

Individual stature depends on multifactorial causes and is often used as a proxy for investigating the biological standard of living. While the majority of European studies on 19th and 20th century populations are based on conscript heights, stature derived from skeletal remains are scarce. For the first time in Denmark this study makes a comparison between skeletal stature and contemporary Danish conscript heights and investigates stature of males and females temporally and between socially distinct individuals and populations in 19th and early 20th century Copenhagen. A total of 357 individuals (181 males, 176 females) excavated at the Assistens cemetery in Copenhagen is analyzed. Two stature regression formulae (Trotter, 1970; Boldsen, 1990) are applied using femur measurements and evaluated compared to conscript heights. The results indicate that mean male stature using Boldsen follows a similar trend as the Danish conscript heights and that Trotter overestimate stature by ca. 6cm over Boldsen. At an inter population level statistically significant differences in male stature are observed between first and second half of the 19th century towards a slight stature decrease and larger variation while there are no significant changes observed in female stature. There are insignificant differences in stature between middle and high class individuals, but male stature differs statistically between cemeteries (p=0.000) representing middle/high class, paupers and navy employees, respectively. Female stature had no significant wealth gradient (p=0.516). This study provides new evidence of stature among males and females during the 19th century and suggests that males may have been more sensitive to changes in environmental living and nutrition than females.

The height gap in 19th-century America: net-nutritional advantage of the elite increased at the onset of modern economic growth

We present evidence on the 19th-century trend in the height of male US passport applicants. These men represent a much wealthier segment of contemporary society than found in most stature samples previously analyzed. The height trend among the wealthy is much more robust in comparison to the average population that experienced a decline in stature. The resulting increase in the 'height gap'--by roughly 1 in. between cohorts born around 1820 and 1860--is in congruence with evidence on rising wealth inequality and the notion of dietary change in antebellum America.

The trend of BMI values of US adults by deciles, birth cohorts 1882-1986 stratified by gender and ethnicity

We estimate trends in BMI values by deciles of the US adult population by birth cohorts 1882-1986 stratified by ethnicity and gender. The highest decile increased by some 18-22 BMI units in the course of the century while the lowest ones increased by merely 1-3 BMI units. For example, a typical African American woman in the 10th percentile and 64 in. (162.6 cm) tall increased in weight by just 12 pounds (5 kg) whereas in the 90th percentile her weight would have increased by 128 pounds (58 kg). Hence, the BMI distribution became increasingly right skewed as the distance between the deciles increased considerably. The rate of change of the BMI decile curves varied greatly over time and across gender and ethnicity. The BMI deciles of white men and women experienced upswings after the two world wars and downswings during the Great Depression and also decelerated after 1970. However, among African Americans the pattern is different during the first half of the century with men's rate of increase in BMI values decreasing substantially and that of females remaining constant at a relatively high level until the Second World War. After the war, though, the rate of change of BMI values of blacks came to resemble that of whites with an accelerating phase followed by a slowdown around the 1970s.

Height of female Americans in the 19th century and the antebellum puzzle

Using 19th century state prison records, this study contrasts the biological standard of living of comparable US African-American and white females during a period of relatively rapid economic development. White females were consistently taller than black females by about 1.5 cm (0.6 in.). Whites from Great Lakes and Plains states and black Southwestern females were the tallest. US females were tall compared to their European counterparts. The height of females began to decline in the antebellum period, possibly before that of males. The recovery of physical stature was also earlier among females than among males. This implies that the biological standard of lower-class men and women did not move in parallel during the onset of modern economic growth. It also implies that the antebellum puzzle was most likely rooted in the endogenous forces of socio-economic change rather than the exogenous changes in the disease environment.

Upward and onward: high-society American women eluded the antebellum puzzle

We analyze archival evidence on the physical stature of 19th-century female US passport applicants. Heights in this group increased markedly at a time when the rest of the population was becoming shorter. While diseases may have affected the physical stature of everyone in the society, the fact that the height of elite women did not decline (and even increased) suggests that their families were wealthy enough to shield them completely from rising price of nutrients.

The trend of mean BMI values of US adults, birth cohorts 1882-1986 indicates that the obesity epidemic began earlier than hitherto thought

BACKGROUND

The trend in the body mass index (BMI) values of the US population has not been estimated accurately because the time series data are unavailable and the focus has been on calculating period effects.

OBJECTIVES

To estimate the trend and rate of change of BMI values by birth cohorts stratified by gender and ethnicity born 1882-1986.

METHODS

We use loess additive regression models to estimate age and trend effects of BMI values of US-born black and white adults measured between 1959 and 2006. We use all the National Health Examination Survey and National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey data.

RESULTS

The increase in BMI was already underway among the birth cohorts of the early 20th century. The rate of increase was fastest among black females; for the three other groups under consideration, the rates of increase were similar. The generally persistent upward trend was punctuated by upsurges, particularly after each of the two world wars. The estimated rate of change of BMI values increased by 71% among black females between the birth cohorts 1955 and those of 1965 is indicative of the rapid increases in their weight.

CONCLUSIONS

We infer that transition to postindustrial weights was a gradual process and began considerably earlier than hitherto supposed.

Did African Americans experience the 'Antebellum Puzzle'? Evidence from the United States Colored Troops during the Civil War

The "Antebellum Puzzle" has been the subject of comment since the 1980s. It involves the paradox that, although the American economy was experiencing rapid economic growth in the several decades prior to the Civil War (1861-1865), the stature of native-born white males had been declining for the birth cohorts from the late 1820s. This was also true for free blacks (Komlos, 1992), but was apparently not true for slaves. This paper uses a sample of 8592 adult back males who were recruits to the United States Colored Troops during the Civil War. They were recruited significantly among ex-slaves. Recruits from the birth cohorts of 1838-1842 were then linked to characteristics of their counties of birth from the 1840 and 1850 U.S. Censuses. Unlike slaves in the coastal manifests, these African American recruits showed evidence of a decline in heights from the birth cohorts of the 1820s onwards. Unlike the native-white recruits, however, the characteristics of their counties of birth had relatively less power in explaining differences in heights. There was some support for the mortality hypothesis, but the nutrition hypothesis needs to be interpreted in light of the fact that slave owners has a strong interest in monitoring and controlling the diet of their slaves.

The height and BMI values of West Point cadets after the Civil War

West Point cadets born in the 1880s were taller (+1.46cm) than those born in the 1860s and had significantly higher BMI values (+0.85). However, the cadets were on average undernourished by modern standards, with today's average reference values being about 5 BMI units higher than those of the cadets. Substantial regional differences existed for both height and weight. While West Point cadets born in the 1880s in the Upper South achieved on average a height of 173.2cm and a BMI of 21.0, their peers from New England were 171.5cm tall with a BMI of 21.6.

Racial differences in body mass indices of men imprisoned in 19th Century Texas

A limited amount of research has been done on the body mass index values of 19th century Americans. This paper uses Texas prison records to demonstrate that, in contrast to today's distributions, most BMI values were in the normal range. Only 21.5% and 1.2% of the population was overweight or obese, while today comparable figures are 36% and 23%. There was also little change in BMI values between 1876 and 1919. Farmers were consistently heavier than non-farmers, while Southwestern men had lower BMI values than their counterparts from other regions of the US. BMI values indicate that 19th century African-Americans, and whites populations were well fed in spite of large expenditures on energy.

Living standards in Black and White: evidence from the heights of Ohio Prison inmates, 1829-1913

The use of height data to measure living standards is now a well-established method in the economic history literature. Moreover, a number of core findings are widely agreed upon. There are still some populations, places, and times, however, for which anthropometric evidence remains limited. One such example is 19th century African-Americans in the Northern US. Here, we use new data from the Ohio state prison to track heights of Black and White men incarcerated between 1829 and 1913. We corroborate the well-known mid-century height decline among White men. We find that Black men were shorter than White men, throughout the century controlling for a number of characteristics. We also find a pattern of height decline among Black men in mid-century similar to that found for White men.

Height and weight in Germany, evidence from the German Socio-Economic Panel, 2002

This paper examines the socio-economic variation in height and weight using data from the German Socio-Economic Panel. Results reinforce previous research insofar as height is associated with socio-economic differences. For example, a low maternal schooling level or a lower position in the income distribution is negatively correlated with the height of West Germans. Furthermore, there is a west-east and a north-south gradient in height in Germany. BMI is also determined by individuals' characteristics with similar underlying patterns. That is, in both West and East Germany, women with low income and low education have a higher BMI whereas the better educated women weigh less.

Geographical height variation among Ohio Caucasian male convicts born 1780-1849

To more completely answer questions regarding health in the past, social scientists are utilizing previously underutilized data sources. This study focuses on one such source: penitentiary records, in order to examine geographical variation in height from a sample of 2554 male Caucasian convicts aged 23-45 years. Data collected include height, age, ancestry, nationality, and year and place of birth. Birth places were divided into five geographical areas corresponding roughly to the United States census geography divisions. Average stature for this sample was 68.4+/-2.5 in. (173.7+/-6.4 cm). Regression analyses on height, birth cohort, ancestry, nationality, and place of birth indicate significant but small differences in height across geographical areas. No significant differences were found due to birth cohort.

Growth of Estonian seventeen-year-old boys during the last two centuries

Between 1811 and 2003, the mean height of 17-year-old Estonian boys increased 18.4 cm (0.97 cm per decade). The increase was 5.2 cm (0.7 cm per decade) between 1811 and 1886, 12.3 cm (2.2 cm per decade) between 1922 and 1978, and 0.5 cm per decade between 1978 and 2003. Between 1922 and 2003, mean height increased 8.2% and mean weight increased 27.2%. Between 1956 and 2003, biacromial (shoulder) breadth increased more than bicristal (hip) breadth; relative chest depth diminished; chest circumference and upper thigh circumference both increased. A multidimensional body structure model is constructed from 1998 to 2003 data.