Freedman's Savings & Trust Co.
Three million dollars belonging to 61,000 African Americans. That's how much accumulated wealth vanished when the Freedman's Savings and Trust Company failed in 1874. Earlier that year, Frederick Douglass had become the bank's President just after it moved its headquarters to a prominent location on the corner Lafayette Square, where the Treasury Annex now stands. Douglass was unaware of the rampant corruption within the bank and, once he discovered how weak the institution was, he attempted to stabilize it by investing thousands of dollars of his own funds.
The Freedman's Bank building was an imposing structure that cost $260,000 to build. Describing his reaction to seeing the building for the first time, Frederick Douglass wrote, "The whole thing was beautiful. I had read of this bank when I lived in Rochester, and had indeed been solicited to become one of its trustees, and had reluctantly consented to do so: but when I came to Washington and saw its magnificent brown stone front, its towering height, its perfect appointments, and the fine display it made in the transaction of its business, I felt like the Queen of Sheba when she saw the riches of Solomon, that 'half had not been told me'."
When it failed, the Freedman's Savings Bank had 37 branches operating in 17 states and the District of Columbia. In the District alone over 3,000 depositors—both individuals and cultural institutions—lost their savings. The bank building was purchased by the federal government in 1882 and demolished in 1899.
What does survive are the records of twenty-nine branches of the Freedman's Savings Bank, including those of the Washington DC office, which are searchable at the National Archives. These records contain a wealth of information about the bank's customers—many of whom lived the transition from slavery to freedom—including their names, employers, physical descriptions, occupations or professions, and the names of their children and/or siblings.
Listen to:
Freedman's Savings & Trust Co. Tour Audio
Call 1 (202) 595-1859, then 106#. (Quicktime Version)
Related Images:
 Freedman's Savings & Trust Co. Bank Book Click image to Enlarge Cover of a bank book from the Washington Branch of the Freedman's Savings and Trust Co.  Freedman's Savings & Trust Co. Bank Book Click to Image to Enlarge Scan of two inside pages of bank book from the Washington Branch of the Freedman's Savings and Trust Co.  Freedman's Savings Bank in Washington, DC. Click Image to Enlarge Freedman's Savings Bank in Washington, DC.  The Freedman's Bank Today Click Image to Enlarge The site of the Freedman’s Bank is now the location of the Treasury Annex. |
Related Subjects:
Reconstruction
| Title | Description |
|---|---|
| Thomas Greene Bethune [Wiggins], 1849 -1908 | Photograph of blind piano prodigy Thomas Greene Bethune, the first African American artist to perform at the White House. |
| The White House | From slavery to sit-ins.... |
| St. John's Church | Free and enslaved African Americans are married and baptized at the President's parish... |
| Paul Jennings | Paul Jennings |
| Lafayette Square | An enslaved woman buys her freedom and changes the nation's history.... |
| Freedman's Savings & Trust Co. Bank Book | Scan of the cover, back, and two inside pages of bank book from the Washington Branch of the Freedman's Savings and Trust Co. |
| Frederick Douglass | Revered African American leader. |
| Elizabeth Keckly (1818-1907) | Elizabeth Keckly was born into slavery in 1818. She went on to purchase her own freedom and establish a successful dressmaking business. |
| Cane given to Frederick Douglass, c. 1885 | Hand-carved cane with illustrations copied from Douglass’ third autobiography, "Life and Times of Frederick Douglass." |
| "To the Depositors of the Freedmen's Savings and Trust Co." | Notice published in the New National Era from Frederick Douglass to depositors of the Freedman's Savings Bank upon the bank's failure. |
| "The Negro Celebration in Washington" | 1866 article and engraving about Emancipation Celebration in Washington, DC and President Johnson's address. |
Institutions
| Title | Description |
|---|---|
| Weddings at St. John's Church | Selected entries from the St. John's Church marriage register. |
| St. John's Church | Free and enslaved African Americans are married and baptized at the President's parish... |
| Lafayette Square | An enslaved woman buys her freedom and changes the nation's history.... |
| Freedman's Savings & Trust Co. Bank Book | Scan of the cover, back, and two inside pages of bank book from the Washington Branch of the Freedman's Savings and Trust Co. |
| Civil Rights Era at St. John's Church | The Civil Rights Era at St. John's Church from "The Half Had Not Been Told Me: African Americans on Lafayette Square" cell phone tour. |
| "To the Depositors of the Freedmen's Savings and Trust Co." | Notice published in the New National Era from Frederick Douglass to depositors of the Freedman's Savings Bank upon the bank's failure. |
| "Monument of a Crime - Department of Justice Deserts a Fateful Building" | Transcription of an 1899 newspaper article about the failure of the Freedman's Bank of the demolition of the building. |
| "Dividends for Freedmen" | Transcription of an 1881 newspaper article detailing settlements to be paid to claimants after the Freedman's Bank failure. |
Frederick Douglass
| Title | Description |
|---|---|
| The White House | From slavery to sit-ins.... |
| Letter from Frederick Douglass on U.S. Marshal Letterhead | Correspondence of Frederick Douglass in his role as U.S. Marshal. |
| Freedman's Savings & Trust Co. Bank Book | Scan of the cover, back, and two inside pages of bank book from the Washington Branch of the Freedman's Savings and Trust Co. |
| Frederick Douglass | Revered African American leader. |
| Cane given to Frederick Douglass, c. 1885 | Hand-carved cane with illustrations copied from Douglass’ third autobiography, "Life and Times of Frederick Douglass." |
| "To the Depositors of the Freedmen's Savings and Trust Co." | Notice published in the New National Era from Frederick Douglass to depositors of the Freedman's Savings Bank upon the bank's failure. |
| "Monument of a Crime - Department of Justice Deserts a Fateful Building" | Transcription of an 1899 newspaper article about the failure of the Freedman's Bank of the demolition of the building. |
| "Dividends for Freedmen" | Transcription of an 1881 newspaper article detailing settlements to be paid to claimants after the Freedman's Bank failure. |
Related Websites:
http://www.nps.gov/frdo/index.htm The website for the National Park Service's Frederick Douglass National Historic Site offers a virtual tour of the Douglass home and information about his life.
http://www.archives.gov/research/african-americans/freedmens-bureau/ The Freedman’s Bureau Records at the National Archives
