page_title: Andrew Jackson
section_title: Panic of 1837
hierarchical_section_title: Andrew Jackson / Presidency (1829–1837) / Panic of 1837
caption_attribution_description: A commentary on the depressed state of the American economy, particularly in New York, during the financial panic of 1837. Again, the blame is laid on the treasury policies of Andrew Jackson, whose hat, spectacles, and clay pipe with the word "Glory" appear in the sky overhead. Clay illustrates some of the effects of the depression in a fanciful street scene, with emphasis on the plight of the working class. A panorama of offices, rooming houses, and shops reflects the hard times. The Customs House, carrying a sign "All Bonds must be paid in Specie," is idle. In contrast, the Mechanics Bank next door, which displays a sign "No specie payments made here," is mobbed by frantic customers. Principal figures are (from left to right): a mother with infant (sprawled on a straw mat), an intoxicated Bowery tough, a militiaman (seated, smoking), a banker or landlord encountering a begging widow with child, a barefoot sailor, a driver or husbandman, a Scotch mason (seated on the ground), and a carpenter. These are in contrast to the prosperous attorney "Peter Pillage," who is collected by an elegant carriage at the far right. In the background are a river, Bridewell debtors prison, and an almshouse. A punctured balloon marked "Safety Fund" falls from the sky. The print was issued in July 1837. A flag flying on the left has the sarcastic words, "July 4th 1837 61st Anniversary of our Independence."
context_page_description: Andrew Jackson was an American soldier and statesman who served as the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before being elected to the presidency, Jackson gained fame as a general in the United States Army and served in both houses of the U.S. Congress. As president, Jackson sought to advance the rights of the "common man" against a "corrupt aristocracy" and to preserve the Union.
  Born in the colonial Carolinas to a Scotch-Irish family in the decade before the American Revolutionary War, Jackson became a frontier lawyer and married Rachel Donelson Robards. He served briefly in the United States House of Representatives and the United States Senate, representing Tennessee. After resigning, he served as a justice on the Tennessee Supreme Court from 1798 until 1804. Jackson purchased a property later known as The Hermitage, and became a wealthy, slaveowning planter. In 1801, he was appointed colonel of the Tennessee militia and was elected its commander the following year. He led troops during the Creek War of 1813–1814, winning the Battle of Horseshoe Bend.
context_section_description: In spite of economic success following Jackson's vetoes and war against the Bank, reckless speculation in land and railroads eventually caused the Panic of 1837. Contributing factors included Jackson's veto of the Second National Bank renewal charter in 1832 and subsequent transfer of federal monies to state banks in 1833 that caused western banks to relax their lending standards. Two other Jacksonian acts in 1836 contributed to the Panic of 1837: the Specie Circular, which mandated western lands only be purchased by money backed by gold and silver, and the Deposit and Distribution Act, which transferred federal monies from eastern to western state banks and in turn led to a speculation frenzy by banks. Jackson's Specie Circular, albeit designed to reduce speculation and stabilize the economy, left many investors unable to afford to pay loans in gold and silver. The same year there was a downturn in Great Britain's economy that stopped investment in the United States. As a result, the U.S. economy went into a depression, banks became insolvent, the national debt (previously paid off) increased, business failures rose, cotton prices dropped, and unemployment dramatically increased. The depression that followed lasted for four years until 1841, when the economy began to rebound.
caption: A New York newspaper blamed the Panic of 1837 on Andrew Jackson, depicted in spectacles and top hat.
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