Livelihood in Colonial Lagos

Livelihood in Colonial Lagos initiates a new line of historical investigation into colonial urban culture, focused on the intersections between daily living and the urban experience. It examines the livelihood challenges that Africans faced between 1861 and 1960 due to the urban planning and development policies of the British government in colonial Lagos. It historicizes the urban livelihood strategies in the informal sector, and it explores how the flow of social capital mitigated the challenges faced by both migrants to and indigenes of Lagos in that time period. Monsuru Muritala illuminates the economic and social history of Lagos with special emphasis on the coping mechanisms adopted by the people under colonial rule.

Table of Contents:
List of Abbreviations Introduction Chapter One – An Overview of the Pre-Colonial Economy and Society of Lagos Chapter Two – Colonial Infrastructure and the Modern Economy, 1861–1960 Chapter Three – Waged Employment, the Extended Family and Urban Culture, 1900–1960 Chapter Four – Women and Urban Experience, 1900–1960 Chapter Five – Neighborhood Cultures and the Redefinition of Social Values, 1861–1960 Conclusion

About the Author :
Monsuru Muritala is senior lecturer in the Department of History at the University of Ibadan.

Review :
This book is an interpretive and impressive coverage of issues pertaining to the story of urbanization and livelihood in Lagos from the dawn of British colonialism in 1861 to the end of colonial rule in 1960. In a clear, accessible and scholarly manner, the author has explored the nexus between modern urbanization processes and socio-economic change in a dynamic African city. Monsuru Muritala, in his study of Livelihood in Colonial Lagos has, therefore, provided a coherent and intellectually stimulating analysis and interpretation of the human dimensions of history in an African setting confronted with fundamental change. The work is an impressive result of the best of historical scholarship in the 21st century. It is an essential and indispensable book for African and Africanist scholars worldwide. This is an in-depth study of one century of Lagos social history. It explains the paradox of the city, the character of its people and the connection between colonialism and urbanization. It gives insight into the background of the contemporary problems of Lagos namely unemployment, insecurity, housing deficit, gender inequality and social stratification. The methodology is a model for historians in the fields of urban and social history. In telling the story of the transformation of Lagos from a small fishing and farming village into an uncontrollably large and urbanized seaside metropolis, this book subverts the existing top-down narrative on African urbanization. In place of the usual focus on kings, colonial officials, international merchants, African leadership elite and politicians in city formation and transformation, Livelihood in Colonial Lagos builds a complex narrative around urban livelihood in one of Africa’s most energetic cities at its most defining moments. The central question in this book is, in the hundred years following its annexation by the British, how did Lagos transform from a rural fishing and farming village to a modern and complex metropolis? What impact did that transformation have on the livelihoods of the rich and powerful as well as the poor and powerless? It explores several socio-economic themes from below, including markets, women and the extended family, migration, settlement patterns and neighborhood cultures, and the intractable problems of slums and slum clearance. A study anchored in economic history, this book brings fresh interpretations to familiar themes, makes an invaluable contribution to the study of Lagos, and takes urban studies on a new trajectory by introducing new information from colonial and private archives. Livelihood in Colonial Lagos uses of a wide range of sources (including archival materials, newspapers, and oral evidence) to shed light of how Lagosians of the 1920s through the 1950s negotiated social and economic barriers as they sought to maximize the gains of colonial urbanization. The author draws conclusion from verifiable sources and presents complex ideas in an engaging manner. Throughout the book, he embeds his narrative in relevant theoretical and conceptual frameworks without compromising empiricism. The beautiful craft of history writing comes to light in the way he allows social history to speak to economic, political, and imperial issues in one of Britain’s most important urban locations.