International Fund, 1946-1950

File — Box: 35

Identifier: III

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

Correspondence concerning the International Fund, a worldwide monetary order established after World War II to prevent international financial chaos. The United States and Great Britain each put forward an economic plan, but the participating countries had difficulty in setting a date for a meeting because of the need for domestic debate. Consequently, the Bretton Woods Conference in 1944 was referred to as "a meeting of technical experts."

The legislation that created the International Fund was drawn up at the conference and is therefore called the Bretton Woods Agreement Act, but the name of the international organization varies. In the planning stages it was called the United and Associated Nations Stabilization Fund; later it became the International Bank and International Monetary Fund. Finally, two organizations were created under the United Nations: the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD). The latter is now known as the World Bank.

Eccles was an adviser to the U. S. delegation to the Bretton Woods Conference, and an alternate for the director, Treasury Secretary John W. Snyder. Much of the work at the Federal Reserve Board on this subject was the responsibility of M. S. Symczak, Walter R. Gardner, and J. Burke Knapp. Knapp, after serving at the State Department, was a director of the World Bank for twenty years.

Dates

1946-1950

Language of Materials

From the Collection: Collection materials are in English.

Conditions Governing Access

Twenty-four hour advanced notice encouraged. Materials must be used on-site. Access to parts of this collection may be restricted under provisions of state or federal law.