The 1907 U.S. crisis was called the Panic of 1907, after a failed attempt to corner United Copper helped trigger a market panic.
F. Augustus Heinze and associates tried to control United Copper’s shares, expecting to profit from a shortage of stock available for borrowing. The plan failed, and revelations about connected banks and trust companies damaged confidence. Depositors began withdrawing funds, creating a run through parts of the financial system.
J. P. Morgan helped organize private support for threatened institutions and persuaded banks to cooperate. The crisis exposed the weaknesses of a banking system without a formal U.S. central bank. It helped build political support for the Aldrich–Vreeland Act and eventually the creation of the Federal Reserve in 1913.
The panic was broader than the United Copper episode. The failed corner was an important spark, while fragile financial institutions and limited emergency-lending capacity allowed the disturbance to spread.