Abraham Lincoln

President of the United States (1861-1865)

Entering office at the dawn of the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln faced extraordinary challenges. Everything about the war was contentious including finding the means to finance it. In addition to raising $3 billion to fight the Confederacy, Lincoln and his Treasury Secretary, Salmon P. Chase, had the added challenge of financing the war in a way that was perceived equitable across the polarized nation. They were responsible for a nation that also lacked a stable financial infrastructure without a central bank, a national banking system, a national currency or a means for collecting internal federal taxes.

Lincoln and Chase’s financial legacy was tremendous, as they created innovative ways to collect federal revenues that are still used today. New taxes, such as the first income and inheritance tax, were introduced in the war years, along with new excise taxes. Also, for the first time since the Revolution, the federal government printed its own money, called greenbacks, and took the first steps toward creating a national regulatory system for banks. Bond drives were organized to sell securities to laypeople and immigrants to raise money for the war while uniting the Union states. By the war’s end, the Union raised about two-thirds of its money through loans, and about a quarter by increasing tariffs and taxes.

Materials

Objects and Images Related to Abraham Lincoln

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Lincoln Campaign Flag Campaign flag from Abraham Lincoln’s 1860 campaign. Courtesy of Mark Shenkman.

National Bank Note $1 Seventh Ward National Bank of New York bank note, 1865.

Lincoln Memo to Chase Memo from President Abraham Lincoln to Secretary of the Treasury Salmon P. Chase listing assets Lincoln wanted converted into bonds.

Lincoln Securities Bond issued to Abraham Lincoln featuring his portrait, 1864. Courtesy of the Bureau of the Public Debt.

Greenback $5 "greenback," issued March 1863.

Paper Change Three cent fractional postage currency.

Spread of Slavery Map The spread of slavery meant lower profits and wages in the North.

Salmon P. Chase Salmon P. Chase, Secretary of the Treasury (March 1861 to June 1864)

$10,000 Bill $10,000 bill featuring the portrait of Secretary of the Treasury Salmon P. Chase.

William Fessenden William Fessenden, Secretary of the Treasury (July 1864 to March 1865)

Hugh McCulloch Hugh McCulloch, Secretary of the Treasury (March 1865 to March 1869; October 1884 to March 1885)

CSA Currency $10 Confederate States of America note, 1863.

Monthly Return of Clothing Monthly Return of Clothing, Camp and Garrison Equipage (receipt).

Jay Cooke Check Check dated August 16, 1873 and signed by financier and patriot Jay Cooke.

Civil War Bonds Bond circular advertising subscription and sale of Seven-Thirties, 1865.

The 14th Amendment The 14th Amendment of the Constitution, ratified July 9, 1868.

Political Cartoon Punch magazine cartoon, “Lincoln’s Two Difficulties,” 1862.