Use the following manual, which was first printed in PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ANTIQUARIAN SOCIETY, VOL. 101, PART 2 (OCT. 1991). It is distributed separatedly (c. $12 in paperback) by, I believe, the University Press of Virginia. It is a manual of 75 pages. From: "Melvyl System" Display: 8 8. McCusker, John J. How much is that in real money? : a historical price index for use as a deflator of money values in the economy of the United States / John J. McCusker. Worcester, MA : American Antiquarian Society, 1992. UCB Bus&Econ HB235.U6 M33 1992 Reference ********************************************************************* Sender: H-URBAN Urban History discussion list From: RICHARD JENSEN Subject: Converting (US) prices to 1982 dollars, 1875-1989 To: Loomis Mayfield Here are the constant dollar GNP deflators, 1982=100 the prices in any year (say 1940) should be divided by the number in column A (0.130 for 1940) to give the price that year in terms of 1982 dollars (Note that the result is usually 5 to 15 times greater) These conversion rates are better than the consumer price index for most purposes. Column B gives the USA GNP in 1982 dollars. SOURCE: Robert J. Gordon, Macroeconomics (Glenview, 1990), A1-3 from: Richard Jensen CAMPBELLD@APSU A gnp$82 (in millions) 1989 1.260 4,124 1988 1.213 4,024 1987 1.174 3,854 1986 1.138 3,718 1985 1.109 3,619 1984 1.077 3,501 1983 1.039 3,279 1982 1.000 3,166 1981 0.940 3,249 1980 0.857 3,187 1979 0.786 3,192 1978 0.722 3,115 1977 0.673 2,959 1976 0.631 2,827 1975 0.593 2,695 1974 0.540 2,729 1973 0.495 2,744 1972 0.465 2,609 1971 0.444 2,485 1970 0.420 2,416 1969 0.398 2,423 1968 0.377 2,366 1967 0.359 2,271 1966 0.350 2,208 1965 0.338 2,088 1964 0.329 1,973 1963 0.324 1,873 1962 0.319 1,799 1961 0.312 1,709 1960 0.309 1,665 1959 0.304 1,629 1958 0.297 1,539 1957 0.291 1,551 1956 0.281 1,526 1955 0.272 1,495 1954 0.263 1,416 1953 0.259 1,435 1952 0.255 1,380 1951 0.251 1,328 1950 0.239 1,204 1949 0.235 1,109 1948 0.236 1,109 1947 0.221 1,067 1946 0.194 1,097 1945 0.158 1,355 1944 0.153 1,381 1943 0.151 1,276 1942 0.147 1,080 1941 0.138 909 1940 0.130 773 1939 0.127 717 1938 0.129 664 1937 0.131 695 1936 0.126 662 1935 0.126 580 1934 0.122 537 1933 0.112 499 1932 0.115 509 1931 0.130 588 1930 0.142 643 1929 0.146 710 1928 0.146 667 1927 0.147 655 1926 0.047 651 1925 0.150 614 1924 0.149 601 1923 0.146 585 1922 0.146 513 1921 0.142 479 1920 0.153 496 1919 0.176 507 1918 0.152 522 1917 0.133 485 1916 0.114 485 1915 0.095 417 1914 0.087 403 1913 0.085 435 1912 0.084 419 1911 0.083 396 1910 0.081 384 1909 0.081 382 1908 0.078 342 1907 0.078 362 1906 0.080 368 1905 0.076 353 1904 0.074 324 1903 0.074 312 1902 0.073 303 1901 0.071 298 1900 0.070 265 1899 0.070 260 1898 0.060 233 1897 0.067 228 1896 0.067 211 1895 0.068 216 1894 0.067 193 1893 0.068 199 1892 0.072 199 1891 0.072 190 1890 0.073 184 1889 0.073 181 1888 0.075 171 1887 0.075 172 1886 0.074 164 1885 0.073 159 1884 0.074 158 1883 0.075 155 1882 0.079 152 1881 0.082 143 1880 0.080 138 1879 0.080 123 1878 0.076 110 1877 0.079 105 1876 0.084 102 1875 0.085 101 ********************************************************************* From: RICHARD JENSEN Subject: A dollar is not worth what it used to be! To: Loomis Mayfield A. Loomis Mayfield asked about my series of GNP deflators for putting city budgets in constant dollars. Further comments: The Gordon textbook is a standard Macroeconomics text, and he is the leading authority on these price indexes & gnp deflators. Most recent edition (look in your college bookstore) has 1992 data, I believe. (ask publisher for exam copy) --For more detailed deflators, 1929-1970, see Historical Statistics of the US (1976) page 197-8, esp series E15 "State and Local purchases of Goods and Services" This is doubtless the BEST series for you; see below for the numbers). See ibid page 184 for brief discussion. Use a spreadsheet like 1-2-3 to handle your calculations. --good regional price deflators don't exist because New Deal philosophy of treating regions equally (ie giving a $$ bonus to low cost-of-living south & rural US) dominated. But Conference Board did calculate some if they interest you. (Big cities in this period all moved in same direction, so I doubt that regional effect is worth looking at;are you comparing different cities, or same city over time? If the latter then regional differences are irrelevant.) If you divide each year's budget by the given number, you get a new (larger) number = the budget in 1958 dollars. Thus divide the 1940 reported budget by .373 giving a new number about 3 times as big); this is the value in 1958 dollars. --you can use 1992 dollars too (or 1993) that will make more sense to the readers. I'll get these. (to translate from $1958 to $1993 you multiply by a number X, whch I will get for you.) This is very easy w spreadsheet. Richard Jensen B. 3.703 = 1980 2.498 = 1975 1.650 = 1970 1.536 = 1969 1.448 = 1968 etc 1.364 1.294 1.235 1.195 1.163 1.094 1.059 = 1960 1.026 1.000 = 1958 = base year .973 .927 .875 .853 .828 .806 .769 .708 = 1950 .689 .664 .604 .532 .486 .461 .446 .423 .392 .373 = 1940 .363 .368 .371 .359 .370 .366 .350 .338 .366 .387 .391 =1929 = first year available ********************************************************************* from: Steven B. Isbell internet: SBI9477@TNTECH.EDU I don't think you need software -- you need data on price indices. Below is the annual GNP price deflator (1972=100) from 1940 through 1980: 1940 29.06 1941 31.23 1942 34.32 1943 36.14 1944 37.01 1945 37.91 1946 43.88 1947 49.55 1948 52.98 1949 52.49 1950 53.56 1951 57.09 1952 57.92 1953 58.82 1954 59.55 1955 60.84 1956 62.79 1957 64.93 1958 66.04 1959 67.60 1960 68.70 1961 69.33 1962 70.61 1963 71.67 1964 72.77 1965 74.36 1966 76.76 1967 79.06 1968 82.54 1969 86.79 1970 91.45 1971 96.01 1972 100.0 1973 105.75 1974 115.08 1975 125.79 1976 132.34 1977 140.05 1978 150.42 1979 163.42 1980 178.42 Just cut the above time series out, and paste onto your data. To convert a nominal value to a real value, you just divide the nominal value by the price index. This puts all the city budget dollar values in terms of 1972 prices. Hope this helps.... |-------------------------------------------------------------| | Steven B. Isbell internet: SBI9477@TNTECH.EDU | | Assoc. Prof. Economics phone : 615-372-3794 | | Tennessee Tech. Univ. | | P.O. Box 5083 "...indeed, the world is ruled | | Cookeville, TN 38505 by little else" -- J.M. Keynes | |-------------------------------------------------------------|