In 1961, Chase Manhattan became the first bank to have a fully automated check processing system. By 1967, banks holding 75% of the nation's deposits were servicing those accounts by computer.
Those and other milestones in national bank history, from the passage of the National Currency Act in 1863 to the banking crisis in the 1980s, are recounted in "Bank Supervision: A Historical Appraisal."
The previously out-of-print book has been reissued by the Comptroller of the Currency's Office.
The book, originally published in 1968, was commissioned by then Comptroller James J. Saxon and was written by Ross M. Robertson, an agency economist.
Besides describing key events in banking history, the book analyzes changes in the industry, such as bank chartering and examination. A portion of the book takes a close look at the regulatory agencies and explains why banks are regulated.
This 250-page edition includes an addendum by Jesse H. Stiller, an economic historian at the Comptroller's office.
"Together, Robertson and Stiller remind us that many of the challenges we face today are rooted in the complexities of the past," said Comptroller Eugene Ludwig.
"An awareness of that history - our history - is vital if the national banks and the communities that depend on them are to prosper into the next century."
To order a copy of the book, send a check for $7.50 to the Comptroller of the Currency, P.O. Box 70004, Chicago, Ill. 60673.
