The Federal Reserve Act passed on December 28, 1913. Almost a year later, in November 1914, Federal Reserve banks opened for business. The Act was a compromise that bundled together those who wanted a central bank, those who feared control of credit and money by bankers and "Wall Street", and...

The years 1923-1929 are often described as the best period in Federal Reserve history. Inflation though highly variable from quarter to quarter, averaged about zero for the period as a whole. Economic growth was variable but robust. The economy grew at a 3.3% average rate despite two recessions...

This survey paper deals with the following issues: (1) Irving Fisher's conception of the cycle as a "dance of the dollar" and the closely associated literature on monetary policy rules to which the contributions of Carl Snyder, Harold Reed, and Lionel Edie are notable; (2) the literature dealing...

Although its role has been overlooked by monetary historians, a two-cent tax on bank checks effective from June 1932 through December 1934 appears to have been an important contributing factor to that period's severe monetary contraction. According to our estimates, the currency-demand deposit...

During the first six decades of the 20th century, lawyers in the United States grappled with their role in stewarding the nation’s tax system. As 19th century tariffs gave way to 20th century income taxes, legal professionals found themselves at the center of a complex and momentous...

Using monthly data a carefully articulated configuration of the timing aspects of the severe 1920-1921 contraction is developed. Briefly, protracted peak and trough zones "bookended" a very short, precipitous downswing. The analytical issue is to explain the trancation of this downswing. A...

Why was the Fed so inflationary in 1965-79? No single explanation suffices. Forecast errors and poor operating procedures played at most a minor role. Unwillingness to accept greater interest-rate variation and cognitive errors played a greater role. Political pressures also played a role, but,...

This paper seeks to explain the collapse of the market for bankers’ acceptances between 1931 and 1932 by tracing the doctrinal foundations of Federal Reserve policy and regulations back to the Federal Reserve Act of 1913. I argue that a determinant of the collapse of the market was Carter...

I examine the diffusion of the electric motor between 1880 and 1930. I find that long lag times are determined by the degree of technical difficulty in application. After solutions became available, electrification generally proceeded rapidly. To make this claim, I explore three industries:...

In their stormy response to Nancy MacLean’s book Democracy in Chains, some academics on the libertarian right have conducted a concerted defense of Nobel Laureate James Buchanan’s credentials as an anti-racist, or at least a non-racist. An odd component of their argument is a claim of...