Early Currency Issues In American History

The Great Depression was a dark time in American history that lasted from1929-1939. It began after the Stock Market crashed on October 19, 1929. According to A Biography of America: FDR- The Great Depression, “It was the deepest and longest lasting economic downturn in American History” (A Biography of America). As a result of the Great Depression one out of every four Americans was out of work. The Great Depression resulted in a life for Americans that was plagued by overproduction and under-consumption of products, starving families were forced into bread and soup lines, and thousands of agricultural workers became migratory workers in order to survive.

1886, which dissipated one of the most inclusive unions known as the Knights of Labor.

Throughout the Gilded Age and Progressive Era, gender roles began to change as women became active participants in American society. For instance, women became active in expressing their views against alcohol and pushed for the prohibition and temperance. Organizations such as The Women’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU), argued that alcohol led to societal problems. Male and female reformers banned together to argue that alcohol was immoral and causing a negative impact on women. Women, if married, would experience an abusive, violent drunk husband who neglected his family and gambled his money away. Thus, the evils of alcohol became part of the progressive agenda that eventually led to the passage of the 18th amendment. Along with prohibition, women also took active roles in acquiring suffrage. In “The Politics of Good Government,” Gayle Gullett argued that in the California Women’s Movement built a nonpartisan broad suffrage umbrella that sought to enhance their “special interests.” Middle-class women assured their male allies that women’s enfranchisement was essential to progressivism. Furthermore, middle-and working-class women argued that suffrage would not only protect working women but women in general. Working class men and women also united to seek reform. Thus, through these heterogeneous groups, the California Women’s Movement built a unified coalition that led to women’s suffrage in 1911. [46] As America entered the First Great War, the

3. Urban industrialism dislocated women’s lives no less than men’s. Like men, women sought political change and organized to promote issues central to their lives, campaigning for temperance and woman suffrage., Susan B. Anthony, launched the National Woman Suffrage Association in 1869, demanding the vote for women suffrage, though not yet generally supported, was no longer considered a crackpot idea. Thanks to the WCTU’s support of the “home protection” ballot, suffrage had become accepted as a means to an end even when it was not embraced as a woman’s natural right.

The 1800s in the United States marked the beginning of many reforms that would be characterized as Progressive. Progressives fought to overcome ineffective governments, corrupt political institutions, and the horrible living and working conditions of the poor. Women’s reform began when the Women’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) was founded in 1874. The women who made up this union were non-violent protesters against the dangers of alcohol. Within three months, the group was able to drive out alcohol from 250 communities. This was the first time that women were able to see

After the Civil War, the movement of women’s suffrage had a new inspiration, as they used African American suffrage as a stepping stone towards women’s suffrage. Organizations, such as the National Association Women’s Suffrage Association and Women’s Christian Temperance, had clear goals to reform the urban areas with women’s suffrage. As this empowering reform took place, women of the late 19th and early 20th centuries started to question their own roles within society. As women faced opposition and had diminished roles within society, the women of the late 19th century sought equality.

The first Colonial currency was issued in 1690 by the Massachusetts Bay Colony, while America was under British rule. Other colonies began to issue their own paper currency, and use of the denominated in Spanish Milled Dollars, Colonial notes were also denominated in British shillings, pounds, and pence. In 1764, the British declared Colonial currency illegal. The Continental Congress in 1775 issued currency to help finance the Revolutionary War. These notes were called “Continentals,” had no value in gold or silver. The Continentals were backed by the “anticipation” of tax revenues, though easily counterfeited and without solid backing, the notes quickly became devalued. This period marked the first time that United States currency’s value was derived solely from its purchasing power, as it is today.

In 1879, a group of evangelical churchwomen, all members of the Illinois Woman’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU), presented to their state legislature a massive petition asking that Illinois women be granted the right to vote. The architect of this ambitious petition campaign, which resulted in 180,000 signatures of support, was Frances Willard, then president of the Illinois WCTU. In using her position as a prominent WCTU leader to agitate for enfranchisement of women, Willard went against the express commands of the National WCTU and its president, Annie Wittenmeyer, who had made clear only one year earlier that the WCTU would not

However, many of the business leaders were not willing to give in to the demands of fewer work hours and days or higher wages. The first effective American union was founded in 1869 by Uriah Stephens and was called The Knights of Labor. The goal of the union was to bring in all workers to unite and fight for their rights. In 1879, Terence Powderly took over the leadership of the union and gained notability by accepting almost all workers, including farm hands, factory workers, women, African Americans, and immigrants were welcome in the union, However, the union excluded white-collared workers, such as doctors, lawyers, bankers, and liquor dealers.The Knights of Labor became the largest in the country for a short time, gaining notoriety in 1884 and 1885 when union members organized successful strikes against the Southwest railroad companies. After the strikes, membership increased to approximately 100,000 members in 1884 to over 750,000 by 1886. The success of the Knights of Labor quickly faded as the union was unable to coordinate it's members activities due to the members coming from a variety of regions, industries, and ethnic backgrounds. And, although the railroad strikes assisted in the success of the union, Powderly avoided strikes believing that they threatened the union's public standing. The collapse of the union came in 1886 when workers in Chicago went on strike against the McCormick Harvester Company demanding eight-hour workdays. On May 3, 1886, four of the strikers were killed in a confrontation with the police. A rally was held the next day at the Haymarket Square in protest of the police actions. While attempting to break up this protest, a stick of dynamite was thrown at the police and killing seven officers and wounding dozens more. The police response was to fire their weapons at the crowd, killing four

During the second half of Shaw presidency the organization included many professional married women such as Susan Walker Fitzgerald, Bryn Mawr and Katherine Dexter McCormick (Franzen, 2008). The relationship among the women of the organization was strong and there were no core of officers during the presidency of Anna Howard Shaw. The success of the organization during Shaw presidency was perhaps because of her social position; she had high tolerance for discord. During Shaw presidency the organization had more connections to other progressive era organizations and associations than any other period in the existence of its existence. Shaw had strong connections to the Frances Willard and the Women’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) (Franzen, 2008). WCTU was the largest women’s organization in the United States during the 1900’s. Many joined the wealthy benefactors of NAWSA such as the leaders of the settlement houses, prison reform, and women socialites. During Shaw presidency a diverse range of women and men attended NAWSA conventions. In these conventions Shaw personally spoke about the issues beyond suffrage, such as opposition to American imperialism and the different needs of working women. NAWSA expanded by making many other groups become NAWSA family such as the College Equal Suffrage League and the National Men’s League (Franzen, 2008). NAWSA needed the collision of these groups to expand its base. NAWSA needed the financial support of the wealthy women and

Carrie Chapman Catt began her presidency over NAWSA after the retirement of former president Susan B. Anthony. Her first years were spent increasing membership, creating highly successful fundraisers as well as helping organize the International Women’s Suffrage Association, however in 1904 her husband’s failing health

In 1869, Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton founded the National Woman Suffrage Association, an organization devoted to gaining rights for women. Anthony made sure that Stanton was president as long as possible; Anthony served as vice president until 1892 when she became president of the NWSA

The timeline of women’s suffrage is a one that spans from 1848 to 1920. The women’s rights movement in the United States started in the year 1848 with the first women’s rights convention held in Seneca Falls, New York. During this convention the ‘Declaration of sentiments’ was signed by 68 women who agreed that women deserved their own political identities. This document set forward the agenda for the women’s rights movement. In the year 1869, Susan B Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton formed the National Women’s suffrage Association which demanded that the 15th amendment be changed to include women right to vote. In the year 1890, The National Women Suffrage Association and the American Women Suffrage Association merged to form National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA). Colorado was the first state to grant women the right to vote in the year 1893, followed by Utah, Idaho, Washington, California, Oregon, Kansas, Arizona, Alaska, Illinois, Montana, Nevada, New York, Michigan, South Dakota and Oklahoma. The National Association of Colored Women was formed in the year 1896 to promote the civil rights of colored women. The National Women’s Trade Union League was established in the year 1903 in order to improve the working condition for women and also to bring their wages in par with that of men.

The Morgan dollar coin was minted from 1878 to 1904, and again in 1921. It is named for its designer, U.S. Mint Assistant Engraver George T. Morgan. The obverse depicts a profile portrait representing Liberty, while the reverse depicts an eagle with wings outstretched. The Coinage Act of 1873, which stopped the minting of silver dollars, was reversed by a series of laws supporting production of the Morgan dollar. The Bland–Allison Act of 1878 required the Treasury to purchase between two and four million dollars' worth of silver at market value to be coined into dollars each month. In 1890 that act was repealed by the Sherman Silver Purchase Act, which required the Treasury to purchase 4,500,000 troy ounces (140,000 kg) of silver each month,

The crisis of precious metal supplies during World War I in 1917 lead to the first notes featuring King George V's picture. The government also issued lower denominations of the rupee for the first time, specifically the Rs. 1 and Rs. 2.5. During the 1920's, notes featuring King George V's portrait were issued in Rs. 10 and Rs. 5 denominations (Indian Currency