Table of Contents

1. Introduction: everyday practice and plebeian affairs
2. Gender, the informal economy and the development of capitalism in England, 1650–1850; or, credit among the common people
3. Credit for the poor and the failed experiment of the charitable corporation, c. 1700–50
4. Shifting currency: the practice and economy of the secondhand trade, c. 1600–1850
5. Refashioning society: expressions of popular consumerism and dress, c. 1660–1820
6. Savings culture, provident consumerism and the advent of modern consumer society, c. 1780–1900
7. Accounting for the household: gender and the culture of household management, c. 1600–1900
8. Conclusion
Bibliography
Index

About the Author

Beverly Lemire is Professor of History and Henry Marshall Tory Chair at the University of Alberta, Canada

Reviews

'Professor Beverly Lemire has provided a well-argued, solidly researched, and clearly written interpretation of the English material world from pre-industrial to industrial times. This highly accessible study merits close scrutiny by economic and social historians as well as as general readers.' Michael J. Galgano, James Madison University (Canadian Journal of History)