America's First Great Depression , livre ebook

265

pages

English

Ebooks

2012

Écrit par
Alasdair Roberts

Publié par
Cornell University Press

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265

pages

English

Ebook

2012

Lire un extrait

Obtenez un accès à la bibliothèque pour le consulter en ligne En savoir plus

Publié par

Cornell University Press

Date de parution

15 avril 2012

Nombre de lectures

EAN13

9780801464201

Langue

English

Poids de l'ouvrage

2 Mo

For a while, it seemed impossible to lose money on real estate. But then the bubble burst. The financial sector was paralyzed and the economy contracted. State and federal governments struggled to pay their domestic and foreign creditors. Washington was incapable of decisive action. The country seethed with political and social unrest. In America's First Great Depression, Alasdair Roberts describes how the United States dealt with the economic and political crisis that followed the Panic of 1837.As Roberts shows, the two decades that preceded the Panic had marked a democratic surge in the United States. However, the nation's commitment to democracy was tested severely during this crisis. Foreign lenders questioned whether American politicians could make the unpopular decisions needed on spending and taxing. State and local officials struggled to put down riots and rebellion. A few wondered whether this was the end of America's democratic experiment.Roberts explains how the country's woes were complicated by its dependence on foreign trade and investment, particularly with Britain. Aware of the contemporary relevance of this story, Roberts examines how the country responded to the political and cultural aftershocks of 1837, transforming its political institutions to strike a new balance between liberty and social order, and uneasily coming to terms with its place in the global economy.

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Publié par

Cornell University Press

Date de parution

15 avril 2012

Nombre de lectures

EAN13

9780801464201

Langue

English

Poids de l'ouvrage

2 Mo

9AMERICA’S FIRST GREAT DEPRESSION

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AMERICA’S FIRST GREAT DEPRESSION ff ECONOMI C CRI SI S AND POL I T ICAL DI SORDE R AFT E R T HE PANI C OF 1837

A l a s d a i r R o b e r ts

CORNELL UNIVERSITY PRESS Ithaca and London

All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in a review, this book, or parts thereof, must not be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the publisher. For information, address Cornell University Press, Sage House, 512 East State Street, Ithaca, New York 14850.

First published 2012 by Cornell University Press

Printed in the United States of America

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Roberts, Alasdair (Alasdair Scott)

America’s ﬁrst Great Depression : economic crisis and political disorder after the panic of 1837 / Alasdair Roberts.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-0-8014-5033-4 (cloth : alk. paper)

1. Depressions—1836–1837. 2. Depressions— 1847. 3. Financial crises—United States— History—19th century. 4. United States—Economic conditions—To 1865. 5. United States—Politics and government—1815–1861. I. Title.

HB37171837 .R63 2012

330.973'057—dc23

Cornell University Press strives to use environmentally responsible suppliers and materials to the fullest extent possible in the publishing of its books. Such materials include vegetable-based, low-VOC inks and acid-free papers that are recycled, totally chlorine-free, or partly composed of nonwood ﬁbers. For further information, visit our website at www.cornellpress.cornell.edu.

Cloth printing 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

The Americans make immense progress in productive industry, because they all devote themselves to it at once; and for this same reason they are exposed to very unexpected and formidable embarrassments. . . . Their commercial affairs are affected by such various and complex causes that it is impossible to foresee what difﬁculties may arise. . . . At the least shock given to business all private fortunes are put in jeopardy at the same time, and the State is shaken.

The return of these commercial panics is an endemic disease of the democratic nations of our age. —Alexis de Tocqueville, 1835

9Co nte nts

Introduction: Back to the Future 1. Boom and Bust Hard times 14 Gauging the losses 22 The bubble 25 The collapse 38 2. The States’ Crisis Defaulting on state debts 50 Disgrace in Europe 65 Shackling the states 73 3. The Federal Government’s Crisis Gridlock in Washington 86 The fraying national compact 98 Losing the arms race 109 Reconciling with the superpower 121 4. Law and Order Rebellion in Rhode Island 138 The anti-rent war 149 Cannon ﬁre in Philadelphia 160 Building civic armies 170

5. The End of the Crisis A proxy war in Mexico 176 Redemption 189 Conclusion: Freedom, Order, and Economic Crisis Note on Method and Acknowledgments 215 Notes 217 Index 249

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Introduction Back to the Future

There was a time, not so long ago, when most Americans felt good about the economic prospects for themselves and their country. In 2006, according to polls, Americans thought that their personal circumstances and the economic condition of the nation as a whole were better than they had been in several years. Most regarded their personal ﬁ-nances as secure, and expected further improvement in the following year. Conﬁdence was buoyed by rising home prices. Few Americans expected a signiﬁcant decrease in housing values. A majority said it was a good time to buy real estate. Conﬁdence about economic conditions at home was matched by self-assurance about the United States’ place in the world. In 2006 most people still viewed the nation as they always had: in the words of Paul Volcker, for-mer chairman of the Federal Reserve, “as a huge and relatively self-sufﬁcient country, in control of our own destiny.” Many also regarded the United States as the keystone of the global order. In 2005, American political scien-tist Michael Mandelbaum argued that the world should be grateful to the United States for providing the prerequisites for global security and prosper-ity. The United States is like an elephant, Mandelbaum said, “which supports a wide variety of other creatures—smaller mammals, birds, and insects—by generating nourishment for them as it goes about the business of feeding

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