The files, 1908-1912, of the National Monetary Commission (2,362 items; 4,724 images) from the papers of U.S. representative and senator from Rhode Island Nelson W. Aldrich (1841-1915) are part of a larger collection available for research use onsite in the Manuscript Reading Room of the Library of Congress.  Established by the Aldrich-Vreeland Act of 1908, the National Monetary Commission was created in order to study banking and currency operations at home and abroad and to suggest changes in American practices.  Aldrich and other members of the commission visited England, France, and Germany to consult with experts and collect data. Specialists representing the commission made similar visits to other nations and reported their findings.

Digitized from four reels of previously produced microfilm, this portion of Aldrich’s papers focuses narrowly on his work for the commission and includes publications, miscellaneous draft reports, proceedings, statements, statistics, and other papers.  It does not currently include the correspondence files related to the commission within the General Correspondence series of the larger collection, which numbers 42,750 items spanning the years 1777-1930.  In addition to correspondence, printed matter, and material relating to tariff legislation and the National Monetary Commission, the larger collection also contains diaries, notebooks, speeches, research notes, serial publications, financial records, and miscellaneous items relating to Aldrich’s life and political career.

A finding aid (PDF and HTML) to the Nelson W. Aldrich Papers is available online with folder-level links to the digitized content.