Posted by Chuck Chase on Jul 20, 2017
President Nate introduced his longtime friend and fellow banker, Don Jeffery, Sr. who spent 54 years in and around Michigan banking, 42 of them as a correspondent banker with NBD. Don is a person who knows all the banks, all the bankers, all the deals done and undone. He is the author of Don't Throw the Empty Bottles in the Trash: A History of Michigan Banking.
 
Don began his presentation by saying that in 1928 there were 782 banks in Michigan. Today there are on 94! In the 1920s, banking failures had dotted the rural landscape of the country as the new wave of industry and commerce constricted the traditional lifeblood of agriculture. 1929 saw the great stock crash, and 1930 brought with it a new tariff and onerous tightening from the Federal Reserve.
 
In 1925 there were 617 banks alone that failed in the United States. In 1930 that number was 1,350 and by 1931 it was 2,293. With each failure came an obliteration of many people's life savings, and fear began to spread through the country that an unstoppable cascade would soon materialize.
 
He mentioned that the FDIC was created through legislation in 1934 and that the largest bank today is JP Morgan Chase with $2.4 trillion in assets. Should you wish a copy of Don’s book signed, you may contact him at: 13296 Wesley, Southgate, MI 48195 – 734-284-0979.