IN THIS ISSUE
▶ By Martin Fridson
▶ By Adam J. Mead
▶ By Mark J. Higgins
▶ By Peter C. Earle
▶ By Megan Gorman
▶ By Ian Austin
IN THIS ISSUE
FEATURES
The magazine of the Museum of American Finance
in association with the Smithsonian Institution
Issue 158 • Fall 2026( ISSN 1520-4723)
Kristin Aguilera Editor
EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD
Howard A. Baker, Esq. Howard Baker Associates Lawrence A. Cunningham University of Delaware Peter C. Earle American Institute for Economic Research Brian Grinder Eastern Washington University Mark Higgins Index Fund Advisors( IFA) Institutional Gregory DL Morris Freelance Journalist Susie Pak St. John’ s University Arthur W. Samansky The Samansky Group Myles Thompson Partners Media Janice Traflet Bucknell University Robert E. Wright University of Austin Jason Zweig The Wall Street Journal
ART DIRECTION Alan Barnett Design
MUSEUM STAFF David J. Cowen, President / CEO Kristin Aguilera, Deputy Director Robert Dinkelmann, IT / Technology Maura Ferguson, Director of Exhibits Gregory DL Morris, Research Associate
Linda Rapacki, Managing Director of Visitor Services and Operations
Mindy Ross, Director, External Relations
Copyright © 2026 by the Museum of American Finance, publisher. All rights reserved.
Financial History is the official membership magazine of the Museum of American Finance.
12 Georges Doriot and the Birth of Modern Venture Capital
Eighty years ago, venture capital began with the founding of American Research and Development.
▶ By Martin Fridson
16 Berkshire Hathaway’ s Massachusetts Roots
Warren Buffett has been the public face of Berkshire Hathaway for six decades, and Omaha has long since become the company’ s spiritual home. But the name on the letterhead, and the history underneath it, belongs to Massachusetts.
▶ By Adam J. Mead
20 Confidence and Illiquidity
A history of financial runs in the United States.
▶ By Mark J. Higgins
26 30 Years of Irrational Exuberance
Thirty years ago, Alan Greenspan delivered what may be the most famous rhetorical question in the history of central banking and the financial markets.
▶ By Peter C. Earle
30 All the Presidents’ Money
The personal finances of American presidents.
▶ By Megan Gorman
34 The Meiji Regime of Japan and the Adoption of Hamiltonian Statecraft
Alexander Hamilton’ s influence on Asian finance.
▶ By Ian Austin
2 FINANCIAL HISTORY | Fall 2026 | www. MoAF. org