This paper analyses social mobility trends using a new individual-level dataset linking parents to children across 3,515 Milan marriage records (1880–1910). As the forerunner of Italy’s structural transformation, Milan is the ideal setting to explore both structural and relative mobility. I trace occupational mobility using HISCO, HISCLASS-5, and HISCAM scales, mobility tables, and intergenerational elasticities (IGEs), implementing an instrumental variable (IV) approach to correct for measurement error.

Filling a gap in the study of Italian social mobility during the liberal era, this research explores status inheritance alongside correlates of structural change like employment sector, migration, and literacy. It pioneers systematically tracking female mobility using traditional scales, treating “housewife” as a transmissible status.

Findings show absolute upward mobility rose sharply, while the industrial semiskilled stratum became highly persistent. Conversely, relative mobility reveals a society remaining immobile net of structural change. Regressions identify the father’s literacy as a key driver of upward mobility and internal migration as a penalty. Sectorally, industrial work does not necessarily improve men’s status over agriculture, whereas textile work hinders women’s gains. Ultimately, Milan’s industrialization reshaped class structures but failed to erode inherited status persistence, highlighting the necessity of integrating gender-specific mechanisms into mobility analyses.