Spanning more than a century of economic change and political upheaval, this comprehensive history of American finance offers a fascinating portrait of the forces that have shaped our nation's economy. From the Revolutionary War to the Gilded Age, Albert Sidney Bolles traces the ebbs and flows of financial stability, exploring the impact of wars, market crashes, and government policies on the growth of industry and commerce. This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.
Excerpt from The Financial History of the United States: From 1774 to 1885 When the second volume was published one critic remarked the author was only an annalist. The charge can be as truthfully made of this volume as of the other. Though such a method may show that he does not seem to be sufficiently equipped as an economist, he has attempted to do nothing more than to assemble the facts of our financial history in an orderly manner, uncolored by economic theories. N o attempt has been made to play the part of the dogmatist or the schoolmaster, or to make the crooked paths straight. If the author possesses economic opinions, he has had no desire to give them an airing in this volume, contenting himself with giving the facts lying within the proper field of inquiry, whatever they may be. Whether the facts are consistent is no concern of his; whether they sustain or undermine any economic or other principle that he may hold, is also, he believes, of small consequence to the public. The important thing is to state the facts fairly, and, as far as possible, their surroundings; and if, in attempting to do this, he has erred, correction shall be made as speedlly as possible. It may also be stated that the additions of figures in the tables include the cents which have been omitted. This statement is made here to avoid repetitions wherever the tables occur. It is no small pleasure to make a grateful acknowledgment to several gentlemen for many of the books used in preparing this volume, especially to Mr. Robbins Little, Superintendent of the Astor Library, Messrs. Lloyd P. Smith, Librarian, and George M. Abbott, Assistant-librarian of the Philadelphia Library, and Mr. Stone, Librarian of the Pennsylvania Historical Society. A large indebtedness is also due to Mr. Cannon, united-states Comptroller of the Currency, Mr. Whelpley, united-states Assistant-treasurer, and W. B. Greene, for furnishing figures and verifying statements. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.
Ever since the financial crisis of 2008, doubts have been raised about the future of capitalism. In this broad-ranging survey of financial capitalism from antiquity to the present, Larry Neal reveals the ways in which the financial innovations throughout history have increased trade and prosperity as well as improving standards of living. These innovations have, however, all too often led to financial crises as a result of the failure of effective coordination among banks, capital markets and governments. The book examines this key interrelationship between financial innovation, government regulation and financial crises across three thousand years, showing through past successes and failures the key factors that underpin any successful recovery and sustain economic growth. The result is both an essential introduction to financial capitalism and also a series of workable solutions that will help both to preserve the gains we have already achieved and to mitigate the dangers of future crises.
Part of a series of detailed reference manuals on American economic history, this volume traces the development of agriculture, transportation, labour movements and the factory system, foreign and domestic commerce, technology and the ramifications of slavery.
