Capitalism in the Colonies: African Merchants in Lagos, 1851–1931

An account that challenges the conventional views of African merchants under colonialism, examining the emergence and changing fortunes of indigenous entrepreneurs in Lagos, Nigeria In Capitalism in the Colonies , A. G. Hopkins provides the first substantial assessment of the fortunes of African entrepreneurs under colonial rule. Examining the lives and careers of 100 merchants in Lagos, Nigeria, between 1850 and 1931, Hopkins challenges conventional views of the contribution made by indigenous entrepreneurs to the long-run economic development of Nigeria. He argues that African merchants in Lagos not only survived, but were also responsible for key innovations in trade, construction, farming, and finance that are essential for understanding the development of Nigeria’s economy. The book is based on a large, representative sample and covers a time span that traces mercantile fortunes over two and three generations. Drawing on a wide range of sources, Hopkins shows that indigenous entrepreneurs were far more adventurous than expatriate firms. African merchants in Lagos pioneered motor vehicles, sewing machines, publishing, tanneries, and new types of internal trade. They founded the construction industry that built Lagos into a major port city, moved inland to start the cocoa-farming industry, and developed the finance sector that is still vital to Nigeria’s economy. They also took the lead in changing single-owned businesses into limited liability companies, creating freehold property rights and promoting wage labour. In short, Hopkins argues, they were the capitalists who introduced the institutions of capitalism into Nigeria. The story of African merchants in Nigeria reminds us, he writes, that economic structures have no life of their own until they are animated by the actions of creative individuals. Cover Contents List of Illustrations Preface Acknowledgements Orthography, Currency Values, and Weights Abbreviations Prologue: A Gunboat for Christmas, 1851 Chapter 1: The Global Meets the Local The Revival of Economic History Port Cities in History The Colonial Port City Entrepreneurship in a Colonial Context The Entrepreneurs of Lagos Cases and Sources Three Shocks Signposts Part I: The Shock of 1851 Chapter 2: Creating a Cosmopolitan Frontier, 1851–1880 The Expansion of Legitimate Commerce Business Uncertainty under the Consulate Founding a New Colony Settling In: The Town and Its Inhabitants The Saro Draw Lines in the Sand The New Order Established Chapter 3: The Mercantile Community The New Commercial Environment Property Becomes Big Business Winners and Losers Men of the Marina Taking Stock Chapter 4: Chief Daniel Taiwo and His Network Becoming a Lagosian From Kosoko to Glover ‘The Head of All the Markets in the Colony‘ Business and Politics The Closing Years Conclusion Chapter 5: James Davies, King of the Merchant Princes A Saro Story—With Royal Connections Davies and Taiwo: An Unexpected Alliance From the Heights to the Depths Returning to Business Halfway Part II: The Shock of 1892 Chapter 6: Crisis and Transition, 1880–1900 The Commercial Outlook Business Uncertainty under the Colony Expanding the Colony The Commercial Consequences of Colonial Expansion The Port and Its People Reverberations Chapter 7: The Mercantile Community The Consequences of the Invasion of Yorubaland Failure and Success The End of a Golden Age ‘Decline’ in Context Chapter 8: Merchants as Money Lenders: Richard Blaize and Isaac Williams Context Richard Beale Blaize: Beginnings Diversification: Property and Money Lending A Family Man Newspapers and Politics Blaize’s Legacy Isaac Benjamin Williams: Early Life The Import Trade Property, Mortgages, and Rentals Family and Church Two Lives Compared Chapter 9: James Davies: The First of the Cocoa Farmers Acquiring Woodland Estate Developing the Estate in the 1880s The Estate Farm Book, 1896–1899 Ijon as a Centre of Innovation Output and Profits Final Years A Full Life Chapter 10: The Changing Economic Environment, 1900–1914 Commercial Expansion and Colonial Development Policy The New Commercial Environment Institutional Innovation Political Aspects of Entrepreneurial Motivation The Port and Its Inhabitants The Consequences of the Second Shock Chapter 11: Accommodation and Diversification Mercantile Fortunes Accommodating Colonial Rule Diversifying the Economy Pioneers of Mechanisation Financial Innovation Bouncing Back Chapter 12: Negotiating Colonial Rule: Josiah Doherty and Samuel Pearse The Doherty Family: Beginnings Josiah Doherty Founds His Own Business Feeling the Strain, 1914–1928 The Man in the Merchant Samuel Pearse: The Great Survivor Calabar and the Ivory Boom The War and Its Aftermath Final Years Two Kinds of Success Chapter 13: Jacob Coker and the New Farming Frontier at Agege From Commerce to Farming The Agege Plantation Complex The Farming Community The Agege Planters’ Union Costs and Benefits From Davies to Coker Part III: The Shock of 1914 Chapter 14: War and Its Consequences The Fortunes of War The Changing Commercial Environment Boom and Bust The Mercantile Community Co-operation and Innovation The Outcome Chapter 15: Peter Thomas: From Meteor to Falling Star The Making of a Civil Servant From Government Official to Merchant The Exigencies of War Life at the Top The Long Descent The Final Phase A Vision Postponed Chapter 16: A Conclusion, a Conundrum, and a Speculation Conclusion: Capitalists and the Spread of Capitalism Conundrum: The Missing Years Speculation: Development in the Long Run Epilogue: Congestion for Christmas, 2022 Appendix: Lagos Entrepreneurs, 1851–1931 Sources Index An account that challenges the conventional views of African merchants under colonialism, examining the emergence and changing fortunes of indigenous entrepreneurs in Lagos, Nigeria In Capitalism in the Colonies , A. G. Hopkins provides the first substantial assessment of the fortunes of African entrepreneurs under colonial rule. Examining the lives and careers of 100 merchants in Lagos, Nigeria, between 1850 and 1921, Hopkins challenges conventional views of the contribution made by indigenous entrepreneurs to the long-run economic development of Nigeria. He argues that African merchants in Lagos not only survived, but were also responsible for key innovations in trade, construction, farming and finance that are essential for understanding the development of Nigerias economy. The book is based on a large, representative sample and covers a time span that traces mercantile fortunes over two and three generations. Drawing on a wide range of sources, Hopkins shows that indigenous entrepreneurs were far more adventurous than expatriate firms. African merchants in Lagos pioneered motor vehicles, sewing machines, publishing, tanneries and new types of internal trade. They founded the construction industry that built Lagos into a major port city, moved inland to start the cocoa-farming industry and developed the finance sector that is still vital to Nigerias economy. They also took the lead in changing single-owned businesses into limited liability companies, creating freehold property rights and promoting wage labour. In short, Hopkins argues, they were the capitalists who introduced the institutions of capitalism into Nigeria. The story of African merchants in Nigeria reminds us, he writes, that economic structures have no life of their own until they are animated by the actions of creative individuals.