Property Rights, Costs, and Welfare: Delaware Water Mill Legislation, 1719-1859

John F Hart

The Journal of Legal Studies, 1998, vol. 27, issue 2, 455-71

Abstract: Gristmills and other water-powered mills played a central part in American economic development and were a common subject of early legislation. This article studies Delaware's water mill legislation from 1719 to 1859, which has not featured in any of the previous historical literature. These laws fall into three categories. First, Delaware's mill acts were highly redistributive, and their repeal in 1773 seems to stem from a concern with mill crowding rather than from a rejection of using the condemnation power in this context. Second, Delaware's substantive law of water rights, unlike the water law of any jurisdiction previously studied, was largely statutory and was based primarily on the principle of prior rights. Third, when household consumers complained that merchant mills were not serving their needs, the legislature responded by compelling merchant mills to offer services characteristic of the country gristmill, even at great cost. Copyright 1998 by the University of Chicago.

Date: 1998
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ucp:jlstud:v:27:y:1998:i:2:p:455-71

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