A number of additional historical records are available containing detailed financial information about the condition of the Freedman’s Bank at various points in it’s history. The congressional record in particular contains a wealth of information on detailed audits of the bank’s finances. These records are often cited in secondary sources, but their details are sometimes difficult to track down as a primary source. These original sources have been collected and made available here in their entirety.
Congressional Reports
The following congressional records contain a wealth of information about the bank, much of it the result of a series of audits performed both prior to and after the dissolution of the bank.
- Senate Report 42d Congress - 3d session - Misc Doc No 88 (Meigs Report)
- Appendix to Congressional Record - 43rd Congress - 1st session (1874 House Debate)
- House Report 43d Congress - 2nd session - Misc Doc No 16 (Commissioners’ Report to House)
- House Report 44th Congress - 1st session - Report No 502 (Douglas Report)
- Senate Report 44th Congress - 1st session - Misc Doc No 36 (Commissioners’ Report to Senate)
- Senate Report 46th Congress - 2d session - Report No 440 (Bruce Report)
Financial Information
A financial overview of the bank branches was reported sporadically. Information about these financials was reported sporadically in congressional reports and in periodicals of the time, some from the congressional audits listed above and some from earlier contemporaneous sources. These overviews are extracted from their original source.
- Bank Branch Financials 1870 (From Howard Investigation 41st Congress 2nd Session No 121)
- Bank Branch Financials 1872 (Transcluded in contemporaneous Annual Report of the Superintendent of Public Instruction for VA Dept of Education)
- Bank Branch Financials 1870-1872 (From Appendix to Bruce Report)
- Bank Branch Financials Jan 1873 (From Meigs Report)
- Bank Branch Financials Jan 1874 (From Commissioners’ Report to House)