1850's-60's All Creation Publication - Mentions Nicholas Biddle and African Americans - Americana

18 pages of the All Creation publication related to Blacks. Page 235 mentions Nicholas Biddle.

Nicholas Biddle (January 8, 1786 – February 27, 1844) was an American financier who served as the third and final president of the Second Bank of the United States (established in 1816 and dissolved in 1836). Throughout his life, Biddle held various positions, including editor, diplomat, author, and politician, and served in both houses of the Pennsylvania state legislature. He is most renowned for his opposition to Andrew Jackson during the Bank War. Born into the Biddle family of Philadelphia, young Nicholas worked for several prominent officials, including John Armstrong Jr. and James Monroe. In the Pennsylvania state legislature, he defended the necessity of a national bank in response to Jeffersonian criticisms.

From 1823 to 1836, Biddle served as president of the Second Bank, during which time he wielded significant influence over the nation’s money supply and interest rates, aiming to avert economic crises. With the assistance of Henry Clay and the bank’s major stockholders, Biddle orchestrated a bill in Congress to extend the Bank’s federal charter in 1832. The bill passed Congress and was presented to President Andrew Jackson. Jackson, who harbored profound animosity towards most banks, vetoed the measure, escalating tensions in a significant political controversy known as the Bank War. When Jackson transferred the federal government’s deposits from the Second Bank to several state banks, Biddle raised interest rates, resulting in a mild economic recession. The federal charter expired in 1836, but the bank continued to operate under a Pennsylvania state charter until its ultimate collapse in 1841.