Title: History of Debt in the United States
Headings: Timeline of U.S. Federal Debt Since Independence Day 1776
Timeline of U.S. Federal Debt Since Independence Day 1776
U.S. Debt by Presidential Term
Revolutionary War Kicks Off U.S. Debt
President Andrew Jackson Cuts Debt to Zero
Recovery from the Civil War
Great Depression and Stock Market Crash
World War II Debt
Debt Grows into the Trillions During 1980s and 1990s
U.S. Federal Debt, 1990-Now
The Great Recession
Today’s National Debt
Can America Keep Piling Up Debt?
Bill Fay

Content: Two years later, as the war ended in 1783, the Department of Finance reported U.S. debt to the American Public for the first time. Congress took initiative to raise taxes then, as the total debt reached $43 million. President Andrew Jackson Cuts Debt to Zero
The War of 1812 more than doubled the nation’s debt. It increased from $45.2 million to $119.2 million by September 1815. The Treasury Department issued bonds to pay a portion of the debt, but it was not until Andrew Jackson became president and determined to master the debt that this “national curse,” as he deemed it, was addressed. By selling federally owned western lands and blocking spending on infrastructure projects, Jackson paid off the national debt after six years in office. This actually created a government surplus that Jackson divided among indebted states. The time of prosperity was short-lived, as state banks began printing money and offering easy credit, and land value dropped. Recovery from the Civil War
The Civil War (1861-1865) alone is estimated to have cost $5.2 billion when it ended and government debt skyrocketed from $65 million to $2.6 billion. Post-Civil War inflation along with economic disturbance from Europe’s financial struggles contributed to the vulnerable economic climate of the late 19 th century.