1937.01.13 “Gold Standard”
by Knute Digerness (1902-1977)
14 x 22 in., ink on board
Coppola Collection
Digerness was a cartoonist from Silverton, Oregon. He studied art in Chicago.
In 1933, in the midst of the Great Depression, FDR enacted a gold seizure and domestic gold restrictions. On March 6, 1933, FDR declared a nationwide bank holiday, suspending all banking transactions. On March 9, 1933: The Emergency Banking Act gave the president authority over gold movements. And on April 5, 1933, Executive Order 6102 made it illegal for U.S. citizens to own most gold coins, bullion, or gold certificates, except in small amounts for personal use. All gold had to be turned in to the Federal Reserve in exchange for paper currency. The stated goal was to halt gold hoarding and stabilize the financial system.
On June 28, 1935, the US Treasury announced its intention to quickly build a gold depository on the grounds of Fort Knox, Kentucky. Its purpose was to store gold then kept in the New York City Assay Office and the Philadelphia Mint. The intent was to move gold reserves away from coastal cities to areas less vulnerable to foreign military invasion. This policy had already led to the shipment of nearly 85.7 million troy ounces (2,666 metric tons) of gold from the San Francisco Mint to the Denver Mint. The depository was completed in December 1936. The first gold shipments arrived on January 13, 1937, and it was a media event.
Fort Knox also stored the Declaration of Independence, Constitution, and Bill of Rights during World War II to protect them from danger. In 1944 the documents were returned to Washington, DC.
