When Washington Shut Down Wall Street

by Silber, William L.

• ISBN13: 9780691138763
• ISBN10: 0691138761
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2008-07-01
• Publisher: Princeton Univ Pr

Summary

When Washington Shut Down Wall Streetunfolds like a mystery story. It traces Treasury Secretary William Gibbs McAdoo's triumph over a monetary crisis at the outbreak of World War I that threatened the United States with financial disaster. The biggest gold outflow in a generation imperiled America's ability to repay its debts abroad. Fear that the United States would abandon the gold standard sent the dollar plummeting on world markets. Without a central bank in the summer of 1914, the United States resembled a headless financial giant. William McAdoo stepped in with courageous action, we read in Silber's gripping account. He shut the New York Stock Exchange for more than four months to prevent Europeans from selling their American securities and demanding gold in return. He smothered the country with emergency currency to prevent a replay of the bank runs that swept America in 1907. And he launched the United States as a world monetary power by honoring America's commitment to the gold standard. His actions provide a blueprint for crisis control that merits attention today. McAdoo's recipe emphasizes an exit strategy that allows policymakers to throttle a crisis while minimizing collateral damage. When Washington Shut Down Wall Streetrecreates the drama of America's battle for financial credibility. McAdoo's accomplishments place him alongside Paul Volcker and Alan Greenspan as great American financial leaders. McAdoo, in fact, nursed the Federal Reserve into existence as the 1914 crisis waned and served as the first Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board.

Author Biography

William L. Silber is the Marcus Nadler Professor of Finance and Economics at the Stern School of Business, New York University

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	p. xi
Introduction: The Legacy of 1914	p. 1
The Opening Salvo	p. 8
The European Gold Rush	p. 26
The Nightmare of 1907	p. 42
Unlocking Emergency Currency	p. 66
Sterling Steals the Spotlight	p. 86
New Street Defies McAdoo	p. 104
Rescue	p. 116
End Game	p. 131
Birth of a Financial Superpower	p. 151
Epilogue: Blueprint for Crisis Control	p. 173
Notes	p. 177
References	p. 201
Index	p. 207
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