Date of Award
Spring 2023
Project Type
Dissertation
Program or Major
History
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy
First Advisor
Jessica M Lepler
Second Advisor
Lucy E Salyer
Third Advisor
Michael S Leese
Abstract
This dissertation traces the history of the Subtreasury System, which preceded the Federal Reserve as the United States’ fiscal management system. Rather than relying on private banks, the government opted to store its money in federally owned and managed vaults called “subtreasuries.” By tracing the history of this overlooked institution, this project shows how the government used the Subtreasury to consolidate and display its economic power throughout the nineteenth century. My dissertation is the first to center monetary storage and control over financial spaces in the story of American state building during this crucial period. When the government chose to keep its money in its own vaults, it argued that it was economically powerful and responsible. But while the Subtreasury wielded immense power and successfully fulfilled its duties, it was chaotic in practice. By emphasizing the Subtreasury’s mixture of capacity and clumsiness, “The Clumsy Leviathan” reveals that inefficiency and effectiveness were not mutually exclusive aspects of American state power throughout the nineteenth century.
Recommended Citation
Chin, Aaron Lee, "The Clumsy Leviathan: The Subtreasury and American Federal Power in the Nineteenth Century" (2023). Doctoral Dissertations. 2735.
https://scholars.unh.edu/dissertation/2735