Hamilton’s Central Banking Scheme

To understand the genesis of central banking in America, Thomas J. DiLorenzo’s latest book Hamilton’s Curse is an essential read. DiLorenzo correctly identifies Alexander Hamilton as the founding father of central banking. As America’s first Secretary of Tresury under President George Washington, Hamilton continuously championed the concept of a national bank. Much with Washington’s support, Hamilton succeeded in creating first National Bank. He believed in order to gain respect from the European nations America first had to establish a monetary policy much similar to their own. From this book one can easily see not only the genesis of central banking in America, but also the committed belief in centralized power. Although Alexander Hamilton never made it to the White House, a young Illinois lawyer who was committed to the Hamiltonian philosophy of government centralized power did make it the presidency in 1861.
DiLorenzo’s latest work is an excellent companion to his previous two works on Abraham Lincoln. In fact it’s in Hamilton’s Curse that one sees source from which Lincoln crafted his own ideals and ambitions.