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A Banking History of Texas: 1835-1929
The history of banking in Texas from the Republic era through the Great Depression is a tale of uncertainty, distrust and confusion, but it is not without a cast of heroic figures. This is the story of the pioneering institutions and individuals that laid the foundation for the current system of banking in Texas, despit enormous legislative and economic obstacles. The Texas Revolution, repeated constitutional prohibitions on banks, civil war and unstable economic conditions hampered the development of an established system of dependable institutions. From the embattled history of the first bank chartered in Mexican Texas (The Commercial & Agricultural Bank) to far more obscure firms, the essential facts are here. The product of years of research drawing on primary documents, this work has been cited extensively in subsequent works relating to Texas and southern banking. Originally published in 1930 by the Fort Worth National Bank upon the death of the bank's founding father, this title has been out-of-print since. This new edition has been wholly revised and re-designed for improved readability.
112 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2007
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January 31, 2023
Relatively niche topic here. Fast read, but I wouldn’t really recommend to anyone looking for something fresh.
I have one pretty huge gripe on this, though. I personally find it interesting to read economic analyses from the perspective of people with… well, less perspective (this was originally published in 1929, perhaps weeks before the greatest banking crisis in history began to unfold). That being said, this one suffers from what I’ll call the “academic treatment” - that is, an editor making minor changes to the language to make it more “accessible” to the 21st century reader. You’d think that, at the very least, the editor would have fixed Dr. Carlson’s incomplete sentences. Instead, she chooses to refer to the ThingThatHappenedFrom1914to1918 as World War 1, when at the time of the original publishing, World War 2 was not even considered a possibility and people generally still referred to WW1 as The Great War. But hey. What do I know?
One takeaway I got from this was that Texas actually had, at one time, what would be described today as a wealth tax - money lenders had to pay a % of their loans outstanding in an annual tax (said another way, a tax on financial assets). Interesting that something considered socialist and “un-doable” today was just standard fare to 19th century Texans. However, this tidbit is at best mildly interesting and learning it doesn’t justify wasting my time on the other 92 pages. Or writing the only review this book is like to ever get on Goodreads, for that matter.
I have one pretty huge gripe on this, though. I personally find it interesting to read economic analyses from the perspective of people with… well, less perspective (this was originally published in 1929, perhaps weeks before the greatest banking crisis in history began to unfold). That being said, this one suffers from what I’ll call the “academic treatment” - that is, an editor making minor changes to the language to make it more “accessible” to the 21st century reader. You’d think that, at the very least, the editor would have fixed Dr. Carlson’s incomplete sentences. Instead, she chooses to refer to the ThingThatHappenedFrom1914to1918 as World War 1, when at the time of the original publishing, World War 2 was not even considered a possibility and people generally still referred to WW1 as The Great War. But hey. What do I know?
One takeaway I got from this was that Texas actually had, at one time, what would be described today as a wealth tax - money lenders had to pay a % of their loans outstanding in an annual tax (said another way, a tax on financial assets). Interesting that something considered socialist and “un-doable” today was just standard fare to 19th century Texans. However, this tidbit is at best mildly interesting and learning it doesn’t justify wasting my time on the other 92 pages. Or writing the only review this book is like to ever get on Goodreads, for that matter.
Displaying 1 - 1 of 1 review