Senior thesis by Hannah Fowler on Freedman’s Bank in Kentucky

Fowler, Hannah, "UNCOVERING THE EFFECTS OF THE FREEDMAN'S BANK FAILURE ON PERSONAL PROPERTY: AN ANALYSIS OF NEWLY OBTAINED DATA FROM KENTUCKY AND GEORGIA" (2023). Scripps Senior Theses. 2034.
https://scholarship.claremont.edu/scripps_theses/2034

The Freedman's Savings and Trust Company (the Freedman’s Bank), collapsed in 1874, resulting in the loss of savings for many African American depositors. This study uses a difference-in-difference analysis to investigate the impact of the closure of the Freedman's Bank on the economic well-being of African American taxpayers in Georgia and Kentucky during the Reconstruction era. The analysis did not identify a statistically significant treatment effect; however, it highlights the potential of previously unused archival data sources for future research. The study also draws attention to the need for more comprehensive and rigorous research in this area, in order to better understand the complexities of the Freedman's Bank and its impact on its depositors.