Accounting History Page
Why Study
Accounting History?
The
history of accounting is as old as civilization, key to important phases of
history, among the most important professions in economics and business, and
fascinating. Accountants participated in the development of cities,
trade, and the concepts of wealth and numbers. Accountants invented writing,
participated in the development of money and banking, invented double entry
bookkeeping that fueled the Italian Renaissance, saved many Industrial
Revolution inventors and entrepreneurs from bankruptcy, helped develop the
confidence in capital markets necessary for western capitalism, and are central
to the information revolution that is transforming the global economy.
There are no household names among the accounting innovators; in fact, virtually no names survive before the Italian Renaissance. It took archaeologists to dig up the early history and scholars from many fields to demonstrate the importance of accounting to so many aspects of economics and culture. The role of accountants in the ancient world is coming into clearer focus with new archaeological discoveries and innovative interpretations of the artifacts. It is now evident that writing developed over at least 5,000 years--by accountants. It is difficult to overestimate the importance of double entry bookeeping. It was central to the success of Italian merchants, necessary to the birth of the Renaissance. Industrial Revolution firms required accountants to provide the information necessary to avoid bankruptcy and their role developed into a profession. Big business required capital markets that depended on accurate and useful information. This was supplied by the expanding accounting profession. Today, a global real-time integrated information system is a near reality, suggesting new accounting paradigms. Understanding history is needed to develop the linkages to predict this future.
Book in Progress by
Gary Giroux: A Short History of Accounting & Business
This
book is based on the premise that accounting has been significant to
civilization and fascinating! Accounting history is summarized in eight
chapters. An overview places accounting in perspective. In some ways accounting
hasn't changed much since Pacioli wrote the first "textbook" in 1494.
On the other hand, accounting has been a leader of the Information Revolution.
Many aspects of 21st century accounting will be unrecognizable by today's
professional leaders. Understanding the role of financial and managerial needs
today and in the future requires an understanding of the past.
Luca Pacioli, Father of Accounting
Outline:
Overview--Accounting
in the 21st Century: Where Are We Now? How Did We Get Here?
1. From the Ancient World to the Enlightenment [Synopsis]
2. Britain and the Industrial Revolution [Synopsis]
3. American Big
Business and Cost Accounting
4. Financial Accounting and the Structure of Accounting
Regulation [Synopsis]
5. Auditing
6. Taxation
7. The Information Revolution
8. Twenty-first Century Accounting
References
The Great Accounting
Ride
Who Was the First Accountant?
Other Essays
Annual Reports of the Minehill
& Schuylkill Railroad
The Big Eight
Gutenberg--Person of the
Millenium?
Financing the Civil
War: The Office of Internal Revenue and the Use of Revenue Stamps
Accounting History Time Line
A History of Financial
Analysis
Audit Risk Characteristics
(Powerpoint)
Links to the Past
Accounting
Business
Museums
Companies
Individuals
General
American History
Other
Sites