History Commons^™

Did Antebellum Illinois Free Banks Take Undue Risk With Their Bond Portfolios?: An Analysis Of Decision-Making Prior To The Civil War, Scott N. Clayman

Business and Economics Honors Papers

Free banks in Illinois could issue bank notes backed by state or U.S. bond collateral. A decline in bond prices as the Civil War approached resulted in banks being unable to redeem their noteholders in gold specie and subsequently resulted in bank failures. Previously economic historians believed that failures of free banks were due to wildcat banking rather than the portfolio allocation of free banks. Over time, other researchers have found that banks that took greater ex ante risk prior to the failure were more likely to fail. There were other price declines during the 1850s, in particular the Panic …

The Birth Of The U.S. Federal Reserve, Richard A. Naclerio

History Faculty Publications

On November 16, 2014 the United States Federal Reserve celebrated the centennial of its organization. Its one hundred year legacy has left no doubt of its vast monetary control, its far-reaching geopolitical power, and its enigmatic secrecy. These defining features of the Fed remain a mirror of the men who created it. Wall Street barons and ambitious politicians vied for control over shaping the U.S. Federal Reserve to the specifications that suited the needs of both their country and themselves.

This paper covers men like Senator Nelson Aldrich, J.P. Morgan, Jacob Schiff, and Paul M. Warburg, who were the undeniable …

Paul M. Warburg: Founder Of The United States Federal Reserve, Richard A. Naclerio

History Faculty Publications

The name Paul Moritz Warburg is synonymous with the founding of the Federal Reserve System. Over the years preceding the formation of the Federal Reserve, Warburg wrote many essays and gave many public addresses on banking reform. His reform ideas were modeled on the central banking systems of many European counties he dealt with through the family business M.M. Warburg.

The Banker's Briar Patch: The American Banker's Association And The Glass-Owen Bill Of 1913, Robert Drake Scull

History Theses & Dissertations

In order to compete with the British in international finance, leading bankers in the United States began to agitate for a central bank and "elastic" currency at least as early as 1905. Although the Panic of 1907 helped stir interest in banking reform, the political climate was so prejudiced against the banking profession that it became necessary for ABA spokesmen to condemn publicly the proposed legislation in order to insure that it would be passed. Privately, these same bankers worked closely with Woodrow Wilson and helped elect him president in 1912. Wilson returned the favor with the Federal Reserve Act …