Jekyll Island’s Best-Kept Secret: The Exclusive Club That Shaped U.S. Finance

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Recently my family stopped at Jekyll Island on the way back from a trip to Orlando, Florida. Jekyll Island is halfway between Jacksonville, Florida and Savannah, Georgia. Jekyll Island is one of the Sea Islands and one of the Golden Isles of Georgia barrier islands. Once you turn off Interstate 95 it is about a twenty-minute drive. We had stayed before and really enjoyed it. It has not been overly commercialized, so there is a pristine quality to it. We stayed at the Courtyard by Marriott Jekyll Island (connected to this Residence Inn by Marriott Jekyll Island) and were facing the ocean.

I had been told that there was a secret meeting held there on Jekyll Island in 1910. Six men gathered at the Jekyll Island Club to write a plan to reform America’s banking system. The security must have been good because their identities were not revealed until twenty years later. Here is the photo I took of the picture in one of the dining rooms of the Island Club:

There was a secret meeting held at the site of the Jekyll Island Resort on Jeckell Island in 1910. Six men gathered to write a plan to reform America’s banking system. Here's a plaque commemorating it.

The six men and their areas of expertise were:

  1. Nelson Alrich-Leader of the Republican Party
  2. Piatt Andrew-Assistant Secretary of the Treasurer
  3. Henry Davison-Senior Partner of JP Morgan & Company
  4. Arthur Shelton-Nelson Alrich’s Private Secretary
  5. Frank Vanderlip-President of National City Bank of New York
  6. Paul Warburg-Director of Wells Fargo

The plan they developed laid the foundation of the Federal Reserve:

The Federal Reserve Association of America would be a single central bank with fifteen branches across the country. Each branch would be governed by boards of directors elected by the member banks in each district, with larger banks getting more votes. The branches would be responsible for holding the reserves of their member banks; issuing currency; discounting commercial paper; transferring balances between branches; and check clearing and collection. The national body would set discount rates for the system as a whole and buy and sell securities.

I wonder if a group were to be assembled today to plan a new financial system for the United States, for example adopting Crypto Currency, how many people would be needed, would they meet by teleconference or in person, and how long would the meeting last. If they met in person, what would they do when reporters from CNN, FOX News, and MSNBC showed up outside their venue?

One thing I am certain of is this. If they met in person and their venue was Jekyll Island, they would enjoy themselves after the meeting ended for the day.

Blog Sources

  1. Federal Reserve History. “The Meeting at Jekyll Island.” FederalReserveHistory.org, November 20-30, 1910. https://www.federalreservehistory.org/essays/jekyll-island-conference

Staying at the Jekyll Island Club Resort

My family has stayed at the Jekyll Island Club Resort before, and really enjoyed our stay.  You can book the hotel here.