ESTIMATING CROP YIELDS FROM PROBATE INVENTORIES - EXAMPLE FROM EAST ANGLIA, 1585-1735

There is at present no series of crop yields available for early modern England. This paper describes a method for calculating estimates of grain yields in bushels per acre using data derived from English probate inventories. Results are presented of 10-year average yields for wheat, rye, barley, oats, and peas for the two counties of Norfolk and Suffolk during 1587-98, 1628-40, and 1660-1735. These results are compared with other yield figures for the periods before and after these dates, and used to revise existing estimates of the progress of productivity changes. © 1979, The Economic History Association. All rights reserved.