Introduction

Abstract

In 1933 the US economy had declined to record depths. A quarter of the formerly working population was unemployed. The nation’s banking system was a mess. Over 11,000 banks had failed or had to merge, reducing the number by 40 per cent, from 25,000 to 14,000. The governors of several states had closed their states’ banks and in March President Roosevelt closed all the banks in the country. Congressional hearings conducted in early 1933 seemed to show that the presumed leaders of American enterprise — the bankers and brokers — were guilty of disreputable and apparently dishonest dealings and gross misuses of the public’s trust.