Inside contracting at the Waltham Watch Company

Abstract

Accounting historians continue to debate the development of cost accounting procedures in late nineteenth‐century US mass‐production industries. While conventional historians (economic rationalists) emphasize efficiency and co‐ordination, labour process and other “critical” scholars prioritize social, political, and ideological concerns. One neglected, but significant, aspect of this controversy is inside contracting. Clawson presented an important overview of inside contracting at several prominent US manufacturing establishments, including the Waltham Watch Company (WWC). Clawson’s work is significant because his most salient remarks have been cited by scholars who advocate the “new accounting history”. Discusses inside contracting in general terms within the socio‐political context of nineteenth‐century US mass‐production industries. Subsequently, evaluates specific WWC archival data from both the economic rationalist and labour process perspectives, the reasons for inside contracting’s abandonment, and the impact of inside contracting on cost accounting developments.