Wildcat banking
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Wildcat banking was the issuance of paper currency in the United States by poorly capitalized state-chartered banks. These wildcat banks existed alongside more stable state banks during the Free Banki
Andrew Dexter Jr., a wildcat banking pioneer
Jacksonian Democrats in Michigan advocated for free banking rather than a state monopoly.
A note issued by the banking arm of the Erie & Kalamazoo Railroad
The Bank of Florence in present-day Omaha
This history of central banking in the United States encompasses various bank regulations, from early wildcat banking practices through the present Federal Reserve System.
Wildcat banking
…currency in the United States by poorly capitalized state-chartered banks. These wildcat banks existed alongside more stable state banks during the Free Banking Era from 1836 to 1865, when the country had no national banking system. States granted banking charters readily and applied regulations ineffectively, if…
Privately issued note, 1863
1908 cartoon arguing that an elastic currency is needed
Woodrow Wilson signs bill creating the Federal Reserve System, December 24, 1913