Preston Brady Delano (April 2, 1886 – August 31, 1961) was a

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

Comptroller of the Currency The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) is an independent bureau within the United States Department of the Treasury that was established by the National Currency Act of 1863 and serves to corporate charter, charter, bank regulation ...

from October, 1938 to 1953. He inherited this Office from an Acting Comptroller of the Currency from April 1938 to September 1938 named Marshall R. Diggs. He graduated from

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

in 1909. Preston Delano held office for 14 years, the longest term of any Comptroller. Delano was a businessman, investment counselor, and served as governor of the Home Loan Bank Board when appointed Comptroller by President

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...

. He was responsible for preserving and stabilizing the national banks during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, which vastly increased the volume of money needed for war expenditures, subsequently causing government debt to rise substantially. Delano entered retirement after his resignation.

Personal life

Delano was the son of Moses Abbott Delano (1848-1930) and his wife, Ellen Verneo (nee Bennett) Delano (1848-1926). He was born in Phoenix, Michigan, but by the time of the 1900 United States Census the family was living in

Fairhaven, Massachusetts Fairhaven (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ) is a New England town, town in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. It is located on the South Coast (Massachusetts), South Coast of Massachusetts where the Acushnet River flows into Buzz ...

, his father's birthplace; his Delano line had long lived in Fairhaven. On May 24, 1922 in

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

, he married Ruth Small (April 29, 1891-February 19, 1973). Delano was a "distant cousin" of President Roosevelt, and part of the extended

Delano family In the United States, members of the Delano family include U.S. presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Ulysses S. Grant and Calvin Coolidge, astronaut Alan B. Shepard, and writer Laura Ingalls Wilder. Its progenitor is Phili ...

. They are 5th cousins to be exact, sharing the same pair of 4th great-grandparents Jonathan Delano (1647-1720) and Mercy (Warren) Delano (1657-1728). Another relative is his fourth cousin, once removed

Columbus Delano Columbus Delano (June 4, 1809 – October 23, 1896) was an American lawyer, rancher, banker, statesman, and a member of the prominent Delano family. Forced to live on his own at an early age, Delano struggled to become a self-made man. Delano ...

, a United States Congressman from Ohio;

References

Preston Delano's obituary at the New York Times

External links

Collection of Preston Delano's works
1886 births 1961 deaths United States comptrollers of the currency Comptrollers in the United States Delano family Chairs of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Franklin D. Roosevelt administration personnel Truman administration personnel Eisenhower administration personnel {{US-business-bio-1880s-stub