Study title

Firstly Holtfrerich presents the Rostov Concept of the leading sector, before he sketches the development of mining in the Ruhr area by means of theoretical approaches concerning theories on production, price, and investment. In doing so, the author attempts to quantify the connections between the development of coal mining in the Ruhr district and other important sectors by means of an input-output scheme. Thereafter he examines how far the development of mining in the Ruhr area in the 19th century in its major phase of growth complies with the Rostov criteria for the leading sector. Finally Holtfrerich verifies the assumption that mining in the Ruhr district has been a leading sector of the German industrialisation. Chart register Chart 01: Coal mining in the OBAB Dortmund, the Saar area, and the Kingdom of Prussia (1816-1913) Chart 02: Annual average price of coal in the OBAB Dortmund, nominal and real development (1816-1813) Chart 03: Number of operating coal mines in the OBAB Dortmund, and average production of each mine (1816-1892) Chart 04: Proportion of the five and ten greatest mines as to the total coal production of the mines in the OBAB Dortmund; in percent (1852-1890) Chart 05: Contributions of coal mines in the OBAB Dortmund in 1,000 marks (1850-1895) Chart 06: Tax burden for coal mining in the Lower Rhine region and in Westphalia (1880-1903) Chart 07: Burden of the coal mines in the OBAB Dortmund; coal mine contributions (“Bergwerksabgaben”) and taxes in percent of coal sales value (1816-1913) Chart 08: Annually licenced basic capital of the “Montan-Aktiengesellschaften” (coal, iron and steel corporations) founded in the Ruhr (1840-1870) Chart 10: Average number of workers per year (including mine officials) in the field of coal mining in the OBAB Dortmund (1816-1913) Chart 11: Average annual net payroll and annual net basic wages of the miners in the OBAB Dortmund (1850-1913) Chart 12: Wages in coal mining within the OBAB Dortmund...