A Nation of Counterfeiters
Author | : Stephen Mihm |
Publisher | : Harvard University Press |
Total Pages | : 470 |
Release | : 2009-06-30 |
ISBN-10 | : 9780674041011 |
ISBN-13 | : 0674041011 |
Rating | : 4/5 (11 Downloads) |
Download or read book A Nation of Counterfeiters written by Stephen Mihm and published by Harvard University Press. This book was released on 2009-06-30 with total page 470 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Prior to the Civil War, the United States did not have a single, national currency. Counterfeiters flourished amid this anarchy, putting vast quantities of bogus bills into circulation. Their success, Mihm reveals, is more than an entertaining tale of criminal enterprise: it is the story of the rise of a country defined by freewheeling capitalism and little government control. Mihm shows how eventually the older monetary system was dismantled, along with the counterfeit economy it sustained.