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Article: Gold Standard (Issue)
- Article from:
- Gale Encyclopedia of U.S. Economic History
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1999 The Gale Group Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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GOLD STANDARD
(ISSUE)
The gold standard was first put into operation in Great Britain in 1821, but the full international gold standard lasted from about 1870 until World War I (1914
–
18). Great Britain re-established its gold standard in 1928.
During the colonial period, American commerce was hindered by the absence of an adequate, standard medium of exchange. It was impossible to establish a gold or silver currency because colonists did not have natural supplies of these metals and had to rely on foreign trade to acquire them. Some Spanish and Portuguese coins made their way into the English colonies. These coins were exchanged for goods and paper money, but the value of the ...