Description:

(1777 - 1864) Chief Justice of the Supreme Court and a deciding factor in the Dred Scott decision; he also battled Lincoln over the suspension of habeas corpus. Great content manuscript L.S. 'R. B. Taney' as Secretary of the Treasury, 2pp. 4to., Washington D.C., Sept. 26, 1833, to the President of the Girard Bank in Philadelphia informing him that his bank was selected to become an agent of the government. In part: '...The Girard Bank has been selected by this Department as the Depository of the public money...In selecting your institution as one of the fiscal agents of the government, I not only rely on its solidity and established character as affording a sufficient quantity for the safety of the public money intrusted to its keeping, but I confide also in its disposition to adopt the most liberal course which circumstances will admit towards other moneyed institutions generally...The deposits of the public money will enable you to afford increased facilities to commerce...' Slightly toned, light foxing and creasing, else very fine. Taney had been sworn in as Secretary of Treasury just three days prior to this letter, as result of different events in President Andrew Jackson's ongoing 'Bank War.' During his presidency Jackson was constantly at odds with members of his party and other legislatures over the role of the federal Bank of the U.S., and it was the main issue of his 1832 reelection. He claimed that the institution was riddled with corruption and infringed on state sovereignty, making it his goal to see it eliminated. Jackson and his advisors developed a plan after he was reelected to transfer 20% of the bank's capital into private banks that were friendly to his administration. When Taney's predecessor was hesitant on giving the order, Jackson had him appointed as the Secretary of the Treasury department. This letter shows Taney reaching out to one bank that was deemed friendly. Jackson's opponents referred to these private banks as 'pet banks' since many of them financed projects conceived by different members of the administration. The 'war' over the Bank of the U.S. would continue until it finally shut its doors in 1841. The objectors to Jackson and his fellow Democrats during this time led to their founding of the Whig Party which saw many of these actions as tyrannical.

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August 26, 2021 10:00 AM EDT
Elkton, MD, US

Alexander Historical Auctions LLC

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