The U.S. monetary system is based on paper money backed by the full faith and credit of the fed. gov't. The currency is neither valued in, backed by, nor officially convertible into gold or silver. Through much of its history, however, the U.S. was on a metallic standard of one sort or another. On occasion, there are calls to return to such a system. Such calls are usually accompanied by claims that gold or silver backing has provided considerable economic benefits in the past. This report reviews the history of the GS in the U.S. It clarifies the dates during which the GS was used, the type of GS in operation at the various times, and the statutory changes used to alter the GS and eventually end it. It is not a discussion of the merits of the GS. A print on demand oub.

"Selected bibliography" at end of each chapter.

This is the LvMI 2nd Edition! Pocket sized 5" x 7" and with a new foreword by Llewellyn H. Rockwell, Jr. Here is the revolutionary book on monetary reform brilliant, compelling, clear, with specific reforms to do now in an edition for global distribution. See the price. And the format is really a pocket edition edition: extremely small format that is super convenient. This edition is specifically designed to be purchased in large quantities. Had the U.S. followed the recommendations of this wonderful report when it came out in 1982, there would have been no housing bubble, no gigantic government debt, no depression, no economic upheaval, no high unemployment, and no international turmoil. This was a window of opportunity for reform. This is proof that Ron was right. In 1982, Ron Paul served on the U.S. Gold Commission to evaluate the role of gold in the monetary system. In fact, the Commission was his idea. It was carrying forth a promise made in the Republican platform. Back then, Republicans at least made noises about favoring a gold standard based on a gold dollar. Ron couldnt pick the members, so from the beginning, the deck was stacked. The majority was dominated by monetarists, who saw gold as too scarce and paper as just fine. Ron Pauls team was ready, however, with this marvelous minority report. Rarely has a dissent on a government commission done so much good. The result was The Case for Gold, and it was the greatest result of the commission. It covers the history of gold in the United States, explains that its breakdown was caused by governments, and explains the merit of having sound money: prices reflect market realities, government stays in check, and the people retain their freedom. The recommendations include re establishing a gold standard and a gold dollar in addition to permitting monetary competition and the private production of moneys. The scholarship and rigor impressed even the critics of the minority. Ron and Lewis Lehrman worked with a team of economists that included Murray Rothbard, so it is hardly surprising that such a book would result. It still holds up as an excellent blueprint for moving beyond paper money and into the age of sound money. In particular, Ron favors complete monetary freedom to use any commodity as money, to make contracts in any money, and an end to the monopolization and printing power of the Federal Reserve. There is a strong piece of history in this book. Not since the 19th century has a political figure made such a sweeping and devastating case for radical monetary reform. This congressman ran circles around even the experts at the Fed. A dazzling performance indeed, and an inspiring and learned book. This remains the best possible case for a gold dollar and monetary freedom in print in our times. The pocket edition is the ideal format to give this book the attention and influence it deserves.

Since the first edition, published in 1985, much new research has been completed. This updated version includes five new essays, including a new introduction by Eichengreen and a discussion of the gold standard and the EU monetary debate.

There is, in informal discussions and even in some academic writings, a tendency to treat U.S. monetary history as divided between a gold standard past and a fiat dollar present. In truth, the legal meaning of a "standard" U.S. dollar has been contested, often hotly, throughout U.S. history, and a functioning (if not formally acknowledged) gold standard was in effect for less than a quarter of the full span of U.S. history.U.S. monetary policy was initially founded upon a bimetallic dollar, convertible into either gold or silver. Although officially committed to bimetallism, from 1792 to 1834 the United States was functionally on a silver standard. From the Civil War until 1879, a fiat "greenback" standard predominated with the exception of a few states, such as California and Oregon, where a gold standard continued to operate.Between 1870 and 1879 numerous countries embraced gold monometallism. France ended the free coinage of silver in 1873, while the rest the Latin Monetary Union followed in 1876. But it was above all Germany's switch to gold that prompted the United States to demonetize silver and embrace gold. Thus began the era of the Classical Gold Standard in the United States.The Classical Gold Standard Era lasted until about War World I, when as common in times of war countries abandoned their commitment to convertibility. What followed World War I was the Gold Exchange Standard, whose failure resulted from its dependence upon central bank cooperation. Post World War II, the Gold Exchange Standard was replaced by the Bretton Woods System and its reliance on a fiat dollar. Bretton Woods finally came to an end when President Nixon closed the "gold window" on August 15, 1971.This paper reviews the history of the gold standard in the United States, explaining both how that standard came into being despite having been neither formally provided for nor informally established at the nation's inception, and how it eventually came to an end. It concludes that the conditions that led to the gold standard's original establishment and its successful performance are unlikely to be replicated in the future.