The 1837 US crisis that followed Andrew Jackson’s bank policies and collapsing land speculation was the Panic of 1837.
The panic began in May 1837 when banks in New York suspended payments in gold and silver. Several forces had built pressure beforehand: land speculation, easy credit, declining cotton prices, and President Andrew Jackson’s withdrawal of federal deposits from the Second Bank of the United States. Jackson’s Specie Circular also required payment for federal land in gold or silver, reducing the availability of paper credit.
Bank failures and business collapses spread through the United States. The resulting depression lasted for years, with high unemployment, falling prices, and severe losses among merchants and farmers. Martin Van Buren became president shortly before the panic and was widely blamed by opponents, although the causes were broader than any single policy.
The event is distinct from the Panic of 1819 and the Panic of 1857. It also helped shape the debate that led to the creation of the Independent Treasury system.