Industrial Organization of General Stores in Three Southern States After Emancipation

I explore determinants of entry and exit of general stores between 1867 and 1870 in Alabama, Arkansas, and Mississippi. If general stores are monopolies, entry and exit should be insensitive to changes in demand, as proxied by changes in population. Entry and exit should also be insensitive to other competitive market forces. Through a newly collected data set of firms and towns, I find limited evidence consistent with monopoly power. I fail to find clear evidence consistent with competition. I also find that changes in population had no significant effect on entry and exit of firms overall, suggesting that industrial organization of general stores was not unique. Other determinants characterize the business environments of firms overall, suggesting a complex environment with market forces not always moving freely.