J. P. Morgan organized a rescue during the Panic of 1907.
The panic began after a failed attempt to corner the stock of United Copper Company triggered runs on associated banks and trust companies. Trust companies were less tightly regulated than commercial banks, and depositors' withdrawals rapidly threatened the financial system. The New York Stock Exchange also suffered a severe liquidity shortage.
Morgan, then one of the most powerful financiers in the United States, brought bankers and trust leaders together in his library and used his influence and money to coordinate emergency lending. He also helped arrange support for the city of New York when municipal financing was under pressure.
The episode demonstrated the absence of a U.S. central bank capable of acting as lender of last resort. Congress later created the Federal Reserve System in 1913, partly in response to the weaknesses exposed by the panic. Morgan did not personally control every rescue decision, but he was the central private coordinator.