ABSTRACT

This chapter evaluates rural demand for goods, services, and coinage. It divides the goods and services necessary for cultivation into three categories: 'start-up' supplies, seasonal supplies, and maintenance supplies like the services of a blacksmith or doctor. While rural demand for coinage was likely always less than urban demand, it was nonetheless considerable. Start-up supplies constitute the largest group of potential expenditures since they could include not just the tools of cultivation, processing, and transportation but also slaves, livestock, buildings to house family, slave staff, and livestock, storage facilities, containers, and cisterns. Seasonal supplies, again, much would depend on the size of the farm, its location, and crops. Maintenance supplies encompass an array of goods and services that would be needed on an even less frequent basis or irregularly. Farmers would have had precautionary demand for coinage to pay for the unexpected maintenance expenses.