Journal of Economic Literature
Book Reviews
2026-08-28
Robert Merges of U of CA, Berkeley reviews “The Democratization of Invention: Patents and Copyrights in American Economic Development, 1790-1920” by B. Zorina Khan,. The EconLit Abstract of the reviewed work begins “Examines the evolution and impact of the intellectual property rights system in the United States during the “long nineteenth century.” Discusses the patent system in Europe and America; patent laws and litigation; democratization and patented inventions; women inventors in America; patentees and married women's property rights; great inventors and democratic invention; copyright in Europe and America; American copyright piracy; and intellectual property and economic development. Khan is Associate Professor of Economics at Bowdoin College. Index.”