U.S. Census Bureau Daily Feature for March 5

WASHINGTON, March 5 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Following is the daily "Profile America" feature from the U.S. Census Bureau:

(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20090226/CENSUSLOGO)

FRIDAY, MARCH 5: BANK HOLIDAY

Profile America — Friday, March 5th. Much has been said about the role of the banking industry in the current economic recession. However, on this day in 1933 — his first full day in office — President Franklin D. Roosevelt faced a worse situation. His solution was to close every bank across the nation for 10 days. This drastic step addressed the growing financial disaster of the Depression, which had caused many banks to fail while creating public panic. Congress then created federal deposit insurance to cover individual accounts and to protect banks from failure. Today, the FDIC insures more than 97,000 banks and branch offices, with total deposits of nearly $14 trillion. You can find these and more facts about America from the U.S. Census Bureau, conducting the 2010 Census beginning April 1st.

Sources: Chase's Calendar of Events 2010, p. 164

Statistical Abstract of the United States 2010, t. 1140

Profile America is produced by the Public Information Office of the U.S. Census Bureau. These daily features are available as produced segments, ready to air, on a monthly CD or on the Internet at http://www.census.gov (look under the "Newsroom" button).

SOURCE U.S. Census Bureau