UNEMPLOYMENT RATES IN POSTBELLUM AMERICA - 1869-1899

An annual series for U.S. unemployment rates for the period 1869-99 is estimated. The series reflects the cyclical economic fluctuations of the period clearly, including the protracted depressions of the 1870s and 1890s. It indicates that these depressions were much less severe t han the Great Depression of the 1930s, but somewhat more severe than t he depressed periods of the post-World War II years. Annual series for labor force, employment, and unemployment also are presented.