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The Gold Ring: Jim Fisk, Jay Gould, and Black Friday, 1869
In The Gold Ring, Capitol Hill veteran Kenneth D. Ackerman tells the story of two dazzling con men who rose to the top of the Erie Railway Company before fixing their ambitions on a scam so great it would make them two of the richest men in America—and cement their reputation as two of the most corrupt. They were Jay Gould, the ruthless self-promoter who came to be recognized as the most hated, if brilliant, man of his generation, and his partner, the extravagant showman Jim Fisk, whose insatiable indulgences finally led to his demise. Featuring a cast of supporting characters that includes Boss Tweed, Albert Cardozo, Cornelius Vanderbilt, and Ulysses S. Grant, The Gold Ring evokes an age of scandal and depravity in the world of high finance that makes today's climate of corporate excess and deception seem positively tame by comparison. Featuring numerous historic photographs, this is a compelling and fiercely entertaining insight into Wall Street's early years.
352 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1988
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About the author
Kenneth D. Ackerman
11 books52 followersKen Ackerman, a writer and attorney in Washington, D.C., is a 25-year veteran of senior positions in Congress, the executive branch, and financial regulation.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
May 29, 2017
A mind-boggling story that I wish was written by someone else.
Kenneth Ackerman actually has written some solid popular histories of the Gilded Age, like his biographies of Boss Tweed and President James Garfield. As a former lawyer for the FTC, he also has the legal and financial mind to unravel this most complicated of financial "corners." Unfortunately, in this his first book, he allowed sloppy writing to get in the way (not to mention even sloppier editing, I could count four or more terrible spelling errors on a single page).
But the story does deserve to be told. After "Diamond" Jim Fisk and Jay Gould secured their control of the Erie Railroad from Cornelius Vanderbilt in one of the wildest stock manipulations in the country's history, they turned their eyes on a bigger target. Gould proposed that they use their new wealth try to buy up most of New York City's gold, therefore "cornering" the national gold market, just as the nation was trying to move from the paper greenback currency to a gold standard. Gould and Fisk got President Grant's brother-in-law, Abel Corbin, to bend the President's ear and convince him that an increase in the gold price would raise the value of American exports and therefore help American farmers. They also provided a $500,000 gold bribe to the New York Sub-Treasury's Daniel Butterfield, who held most of the federal government's gold reserves, so that the federal government would not flood the market just as they were pushing the price up. In one terrific week in September 1869 they pushed the price of gold from $130 to $160, but the gold "bears," such as Brown Brothers member Henry Brown, fought back. Finally, Grant got word that his brother-in-law Corbin and others were speculating with his good name and ordered the Treasury to release $4 million in gold, breaking the gold corner for good on "Black Friday." This would have been the end of Gould and Fisk if they had not secured help from Boss Tweed's New York City judges to rain injunctions down on the Gold Exchange Bank and the Gold Room, allowing them to back out of old contracts and retain a hefty slice of their winnings.
Gould and Fisk's effort was a near perfect maneuver of Gilded Age financial manipulation, Tammany political corruption, and Washington spoils, that almost ruined the country but added to the pile of two men's fortunes. It's an amazing story, that deserves a better chronicle.
Kenneth Ackerman actually has written some solid popular histories of the Gilded Age, like his biographies of Boss Tweed and President James Garfield. As a former lawyer for the FTC, he also has the legal and financial mind to unravel this most complicated of financial "corners." Unfortunately, in this his first book, he allowed sloppy writing to get in the way (not to mention even sloppier editing, I could count four or more terrible spelling errors on a single page).
But the story does deserve to be told. After "Diamond" Jim Fisk and Jay Gould secured their control of the Erie Railroad from Cornelius Vanderbilt in one of the wildest stock manipulations in the country's history, they turned their eyes on a bigger target. Gould proposed that they use their new wealth try to buy up most of New York City's gold, therefore "cornering" the national gold market, just as the nation was trying to move from the paper greenback currency to a gold standard. Gould and Fisk got President Grant's brother-in-law, Abel Corbin, to bend the President's ear and convince him that an increase in the gold price would raise the value of American exports and therefore help American farmers. They also provided a $500,000 gold bribe to the New York Sub-Treasury's Daniel Butterfield, who held most of the federal government's gold reserves, so that the federal government would not flood the market just as they were pushing the price up. In one terrific week in September 1869 they pushed the price of gold from $130 to $160, but the gold "bears," such as Brown Brothers member Henry Brown, fought back. Finally, Grant got word that his brother-in-law Corbin and others were speculating with his good name and ordered the Treasury to release $4 million in gold, breaking the gold corner for good on "Black Friday." This would have been the end of Gould and Fisk if they had not secured help from Boss Tweed's New York City judges to rain injunctions down on the Gold Exchange Bank and the Gold Room, allowing them to back out of old contracts and retain a hefty slice of their winnings.
Gould and Fisk's effort was a near perfect maneuver of Gilded Age financial manipulation, Tammany political corruption, and Washington spoils, that almost ruined the country but added to the pile of two men's fortunes. It's an amazing story, that deserves a better chronicle.
October 18, 2008
Financial crises are not a new development in the American economy. We have been in a boom-bust cycle for a very long time now. The bank collapse of 2008 is not the end of the world.
That being said, this is a book worth reading. The complexities of high finance are described tolerably well by Ackerman, and the personal history of the key players is quite interesting.
One criticism, and I don't know if this is just the edition I have, the copy editing is terrible. There are several obvious misspellings and missing letters. As a Lit major, this annoys me.
That being said, this is a book worth reading. The complexities of high finance are described tolerably well by Ackerman, and the personal history of the key players is quite interesting.
One criticism, and I don't know if this is just the edition I have, the copy editing is terrible. There are several obvious misspellings and missing letters. As a Lit major, this annoys me.
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January 16, 2017I registered a book at BookCrossing.com!
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April 3, 2020
This book is about the characters who were able to subvert the law and manipulate the gold market during the 19th century. The main characters are Jim Fisk and Jay Gould who were protégées of Daniel Drew, financer of the Erie Railway Company. During the battle against Vanderbilt for the railroad, Jim and Jay learned to trust only each other with one providing charisma and the other brilliance. Part of the plan against Vanderbilt was to sell stock which they have been ordered not to do as the judges were in Vanderbilt’s employee. The event having cost Vanderbilt a lot of money, with the proceeding negotiations left the Erie Railway Company to Jim Fisk and Jay Gould. Using the finances from the company, they were able to make their way in numerous financial fiascos, one of which was the Gold Ring.
Their initial use their position was to create a lock-up. They withdrew so much money from the system which tightened credit which created an artificial depression. They profited from the lock-up by selling short stocks before the lock-up as during a lock-up, stocks lose their value. When the conditions changed, they changed their position from selling stocks short to purchasing them. During this time, the judges were bought to be on the side of the Jay and Jim.
The next big thing the duo did was create a Gold Ring. Jim was opposed to cornering gold but relented when parts of the plan began to come together. As the U.S. government held a lot of gold, they needed an insider and get President Grant on their side. Grant was known to be apposed to raising the gold price which was a problem for the Gold Ring. It was Corbin, Grant’s brother-in-law who facilitated the meeting between Grant and the duo. The story went that increasing the price of gold would help farmers sell more overseas while making higher profits at home. Grant relented after some time, but did not know that he was helping gold speculation which was forbidden for government officials. Speculation being forbidden did not mean prevent Jay and Jim gifting gold accounts to many members of the administration. Having an inside influence within the administration meant that they would be able to benefit before everyone else. At one point, Jay held 2 or 3 times the amount of gold that existed with which he held market power to tailor the price by changing the supply of gold and calling in the loans.
Breaking the gold ring started when Grand found out about Jim and Jay’s bribery of administrative and family members. The ring was broken not by law, but by enough people selling gold to drive the price of gold down. The events breaking the hold of Jay and Jim caused a panic for which many lost all of their finances. Jay and Jim were blamed for the debacle. Jay used bought judges to prevent losing money. Over time, many who participated in the gold ring were either persona non grata in the financial community, brought to trial for many additional legal issues, or lived in obscurity.
There are parts of the book for which Ackerman provides an understanding of how life was different than and now. Those aspects were integral to understanding the situation that was playing out as many of the issues would have been impossible later on due to technology or law. The problem is that there were also many times when something important happened but there was no understanding on what actually happened and why it happened. Those gaps in explanations did not prevent an understanding of who the event helped or how it changed the situation, but it did make reading and understanding the story more difficult.
Their initial use their position was to create a lock-up. They withdrew so much money from the system which tightened credit which created an artificial depression. They profited from the lock-up by selling short stocks before the lock-up as during a lock-up, stocks lose their value. When the conditions changed, they changed their position from selling stocks short to purchasing them. During this time, the judges were bought to be on the side of the Jay and Jim.
The next big thing the duo did was create a Gold Ring. Jim was opposed to cornering gold but relented when parts of the plan began to come together. As the U.S. government held a lot of gold, they needed an insider and get President Grant on their side. Grant was known to be apposed to raising the gold price which was a problem for the Gold Ring. It was Corbin, Grant’s brother-in-law who facilitated the meeting between Grant and the duo. The story went that increasing the price of gold would help farmers sell more overseas while making higher profits at home. Grant relented after some time, but did not know that he was helping gold speculation which was forbidden for government officials. Speculation being forbidden did not mean prevent Jay and Jim gifting gold accounts to many members of the administration. Having an inside influence within the administration meant that they would be able to benefit before everyone else. At one point, Jay held 2 or 3 times the amount of gold that existed with which he held market power to tailor the price by changing the supply of gold and calling in the loans.
Breaking the gold ring started when Grand found out about Jim and Jay’s bribery of administrative and family members. The ring was broken not by law, but by enough people selling gold to drive the price of gold down. The events breaking the hold of Jay and Jim caused a panic for which many lost all of their finances. Jay and Jim were blamed for the debacle. Jay used bought judges to prevent losing money. Over time, many who participated in the gold ring were either persona non grata in the financial community, brought to trial for many additional legal issues, or lived in obscurity.
There are parts of the book for which Ackerman provides an understanding of how life was different than and now. Those aspects were integral to understanding the situation that was playing out as many of the issues would have been impossible later on due to technology or law. The problem is that there were also many times when something important happened but there was no understanding on what actually happened and why it happened. Those gaps in explanations did not prevent an understanding of who the event helped or how it changed the situation, but it did make reading and understanding the story more difficult.
March 21, 2018
A very interesting read that shows that those hateful regulations that people like to complain about, generally have a reason for coming into existence. There are no heros in this story, and a miniscule number of innocent bystanders. Jay Gould and Jim Fisk were partners in a variety of money making operations that they excelled in creating. Gould wants to corner the gold market in New York, but he must make sure that Washington (the Treasury) will not sold government gold to support the market. Ackerman does yeoman work in plugging away at the evidence and the clues as it moves forward, It as compelling as a Ludlum thriller. Spoiler Alert: After the attempt fails and the country’s economy has been knocked into a cocked hat, only a few of the greedier types have a comeuppance and that is mainly monetary loss. No one goes to jail because of it. A real slice of life in buccaneer capitalism. The only downside is the terrible proofreading job in the printing. It is noticeable and distracting.
June 10, 2023
Detailed look at how financiers (and con men) Jay Gould and Jim Fisk attempted to corner the gold market in 1869, and its effect on the post-Civil War American economy. The biggest revelation to me was the wide-open and mostly unregulated nature of how gold was traded.
July 8, 2021
I love these guys
September 9, 2024
Fantastic, detailed account of the events leading up to and following Black Friday
February 4, 2012
Ackerman writes another accessible, informative and engaging history of the Gilded Age in his book on the Gold Ring. At a time when government regulation was nonexistent and men with deep pockets could reign financial terror; the unthinkable happened and greed ran the country. This book details from start to finish how the key players came to know eachother and plan the gold ring under Jay Gould's masterful strategy. It is a story of daring wits, bribery at the highest levels and pure showmanship that all two men to manipulate the price of gold. Utilizing resources from newspapers, to letters to congressional hearings conducted by James Garfield the reader is given a clear picture of what happened during the gold ring.
I do second what other reviewers have said that this book is full of typos that make it hard to read at times but it does not draw away from the content. Overall this is the book to read if you want to understand further the gold ring and its implications in the financial world.
June 4, 2016
A good book that tells the story of Jim Fisk and Jay Gould’s attempt to corner the Gold market in 1869. He sets the table by having a brief overview of how Fisk and Gould came to control the Erie Railroad in their battle with Cornelius Vanderbilt and how they came to be connected to Boss Tweed. The rest of the book details how Gould meticulously planned to corner the Gold market thru the influence of politicians and the media and the aftermath of the corner. Good read
June 18, 2012
IF you like history, politics and economomics, this is the book for you! I love history so I thought this book was automatically fascinating. IT goes into detail the events leading up to Black Friday and the errors Gould made as well as Fisk and his extra-marital affair. It also highlights Edison's small part in inventing the ticker. I'd read it again. This would make a great movie!
January 2, 2015
didn't hold my interest as much as his other the books did, hard for me to get my brain around the nuts and bolts.
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October 16, 2015AMAZING
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews