Dividend check from Freedman's Savings and Trust Company
date: label: Date
content: 1880
name: label: Issued by
content: Freedmen's Savings and Trust Company, American, 1865 - 1874
label: Subject of
content: Robert Walker
label: Subject of
content: John Andrew Jackson Creswell, American, 1828 - 1891
label: Subject of
content: Robert Purvis, American, 1810 - 1898
notes: label: Caption
content: In March 1865, Congress incorporated the Freedman’s Savings and Trust Company, known as the Freedman’s
label: Caption
content: Savings Bank. The bank, run by white trustees, promised newly freed African Americans a safe place to deposit
label: Caption
content: their money. But after Congress relaxed its restrictions on the bank’s investment policies, corrupt officials
label: Caption
content: mismanaged the bank’s funds, and it collapsed in 1874. Over 60,000 depositors lost nearly $3 million in savings.
label: Caption
content: Many spent decades petitioning the government for reimbursement. Ultimately, little more than half, $1.7
label: Caption
content: million, was repaid.
label: Caption
content: In March 1874, three months before the bank collapsed, officials elected Frederick Douglass as bank president,
label: Caption
content: in an effort to reassure African American depositors. But Douglass soon realized the bank was insolvent, and
label: Caption
content: advised Congress to shut it down to prevent further losses. Privately, Douglass described the bank’s closing in a
label: Caption
content: letter to Gerrit Smith: “It has been the black man’s cow, but the white man’s milk.” On July 3, 1874, he signed
label: Caption
content: this letter to John A. J. Creswell, one of the commissioners appointed to take charge of the bank’s assets.
label: Caption
content: For several years after the bank closed, commissioners issued dividends to account holders for a percentage of
label: Caption
content: their deposits. Robert Walker received this check for 10 percent of his $2 deposit in 1880.
label: Description
content: This is a dividend check for 20 cents issued by the Office of the Commissioners of the Freedman’s Savings and Trust Company to Robert Walker. It consists of a rectangular piece of paper with both printed text and graphic and handwritten text. Across the top margin of the check is printed text that reads “Check No. (76694) Office/ of the/ COMMISSIONERS/ of the/ FREEDMAN’S/ SAVINGS/and/TRUST COMPANY.” Below the check number is the printed word “Account No.“ followed by a blank space with handwritten text that reads “4154.” Below the name of the bank is printed text that reads “WASHINGTON, D.C.” and a bank space with handwritten text that reads “Sept 1st 1880.” Against the center left margin is an image of Abraham Lincoln in an octagonal window. Shown from the chest up, he wears a light-colored shirt under a dark colored coat, vest, and cravat. He is turned a quarter-turn from the viewer. His name “Lincoln” is printed in small text under his image. Next to the image is printed text the reads “Pay to the order of“ followed by a blank space with the name “Robert Walker” written in ink. The next line down has the words “Twenty cents ---“ handwritten in ink with the following printed word “Dollars” crossed out twice. Below that line on the left side of the check a blank space is filled in with handwritten “New York” followed by printed text “Branch.” On the right side are three blank space one above the other with two names handwritten in ink. One top is “John A.J. Creswell” and below is “Robert Purvis.” The word “Commissioners” is printed just under these lines in the bottom right hand corner. In the bottom left hand corner of the check is a printed grey rectangle with a large white dollar sign. Handwritten in ink within the rectangle is “20/100 –“ followed by a blank space with “3rd” handwritten in it, followed by the printed word text “Dividend.” The check is outlined in a narrow decorative border. There are two dark smudges along the bottom margin.
place: label: Place made
content: New York City, New York, United States, North and Central America
topic: label: Topic
content: African American
label: Topic
content: Finance
label: Topic
content: Government
label: Topic
content: Reconstruction, U.S. History, 1865-1877
setName: label: See more items in
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
label: Classification
content: Slavery and Freedom Objects
label: Classification
content: Documents and Manuscripts
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of the Mark E. Mitchell Collection of African American History
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture
identifier: label: Object number
content: 2021.9
objectType: label: Type
content: checks
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Public domain
label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: ink on paper
label: Dimensions
content: H x W: 3 9/16 × 8 1/16 in. (9 × 20.5 cm)