Page 406 - Panjek, Aleksander, Jesper Larsson and Luca Mocarelli, eds. 2017. Integrated Peasant Economy in a Comparative Perspective: Alps, Scandinavia and Beyond. Koper: University of Primorska Press
P. 406
integr ated peasant economy in a compar ative perspective
curred into the 20th century6 (more about Dalarna also in Westin, Isacson,
and Lennartsson and in Larsson in this volume).
Some of the Lake Mälaren diary-writing peasants I have studied, dealt
with peasant craftsmen from Dalarna who travelled to them and delivered
blacksmith and wooden craft products7. The number of diaries is small, but
this evidence is hardly co-incidental. Largely the crafts peasants were in
control of the marketing of their output and made deals directly with the
final customers.
Another area, with diverse development of rural craftsmanship
evolved around the northern borders of Scania, adjacent to the specialised
agricultural region of southwest Scania. This too, was a forested district
with small prospects of large-scale agriculture and grain surpluses. To the
present date, agricultural farms are comparatively small in this area (Sta-
tistics Sweden Yearbook of Agricultural Statistics 2014, 55). To a large extent
these producers were directed towards the Scanian market and produced
implements and capital goods used in the plain land farming.8 They did
not, however, sell only craft items; they also acted as migrant workers. They
walked south to the plains and did threshing. Later, and far into the 20th
century they came in their thousands to harvest sugar beets on the Scanian
plains (Morell 2001, 74). Somewhat further to the north and on the border
to Halland and southern Västergötland, a very diverse domestic industry
emerged (Isacson and Magnusson 1987, 26). Here too, there is an unbroken
continuity to small-scale industry, presently not least working as subcon-
tractors to large industrial companies, for example car companies.
In several regions textile production based on home-grown flax and
on wool developed into regional niches. In forested districts in western
Sweden, somewhat inland from Göteborg and also further south such ac-
tivities arose, but in fact quite diverse domestic trades, including wood-
work, developed in the area (Utterström 1957 II, 71–82). Pedlars from the
area marketed foremost textiles and woodwork products over most of the
country. These people, referred to as Västgötar, were also noted in the Lake
Mälaren basin diaries. Quite a bit of conflict arose with town burghers in
Borås and Ulricehamn, who tried to claim monopoly rights on the trading
(Utterström 1957 II, 103–23; Rosander 1980, 40–2; Lundqvist 2008). By the
early 19th century imported cotton started to out-compete linen and then
6 Rosander 1967.
7 Nordiska museet SBD 70; Jansson 1968.
8 Isacson and Magnusson 1987, 26–28.
404
curred into the 20th century6 (more about Dalarna also in Westin, Isacson,
and Lennartsson and in Larsson in this volume).
Some of the Lake Mälaren diary-writing peasants I have studied, dealt
with peasant craftsmen from Dalarna who travelled to them and delivered
blacksmith and wooden craft products7. The number of diaries is small, but
this evidence is hardly co-incidental. Largely the crafts peasants were in
control of the marketing of their output and made deals directly with the
final customers.
Another area, with diverse development of rural craftsmanship
evolved around the northern borders of Scania, adjacent to the specialised
agricultural region of southwest Scania. This too, was a forested district
with small prospects of large-scale agriculture and grain surpluses. To the
present date, agricultural farms are comparatively small in this area (Sta-
tistics Sweden Yearbook of Agricultural Statistics 2014, 55). To a large extent
these producers were directed towards the Scanian market and produced
implements and capital goods used in the plain land farming.8 They did
not, however, sell only craft items; they also acted as migrant workers. They
walked south to the plains and did threshing. Later, and far into the 20th
century they came in their thousands to harvest sugar beets on the Scanian
plains (Morell 2001, 74). Somewhat further to the north and on the border
to Halland and southern Västergötland, a very diverse domestic industry
emerged (Isacson and Magnusson 1987, 26). Here too, there is an unbroken
continuity to small-scale industry, presently not least working as subcon-
tractors to large industrial companies, for example car companies.
In several regions textile production based on home-grown flax and
on wool developed into regional niches. In forested districts in western
Sweden, somewhat inland from Göteborg and also further south such ac-
tivities arose, but in fact quite diverse domestic trades, including wood-
work, developed in the area (Utterström 1957 II, 71–82). Pedlars from the
area marketed foremost textiles and woodwork products over most of the
country. These people, referred to as Västgötar, were also noted in the Lake
Mälaren basin diaries. Quite a bit of conflict arose with town burghers in
Borås and Ulricehamn, who tried to claim monopoly rights on the trading
(Utterström 1957 II, 103–23; Rosander 1980, 40–2; Lundqvist 2008). By the
early 19th century imported cotton started to out-compete linen and then
6 Rosander 1967.
7 Nordiska museet SBD 70; Jansson 1968.
8 Isacson and Magnusson 1987, 26–28.
404
