Serious financial panics occurred in 1893 and 1907, causing more and more people to be distrustful of banks and bankers. Congress responded by creating the National Monetary Commission in 1908 to develop a solution to recurring financial crises. This ultimately resulted in the creation of a central Federal Reserve system that could issue currency. Pictured above is a run on the Society for Savings Bank (now Key Bank) in 1910. Nearly 5,000 people, mainly immigrants, waited in line for hours to withdraw money after rumors of a financial crisis circulated throughout the city. Society for Savings paid out more than $1,000,000 in one day.
