Federal Reserve Historian

The Federal Reserve Historian plays a critical role in preserving the history of the U.S. central bank and its policy actions, while helping to ensure that history is accessible to educators, students, researchers, and the general public. The Historian is a System position based at the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.

In 2022, Jim Bullard, then president of the St. Louis Fed, commented on the role:

"The history of the Federal Reserve System provides important insights and lessons about the implementation and effects of monetary policy. Historians studying and sharing what we’ve learned from past experiences improves our policymaking on all fronts."

The current Historian is Jonathan Rose, Ph.D., who also serves as a senior economist and economic advisor at the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago.

Jonathan Rose received his Ph.D. in economics from the University of California, Berkeley. His research focuses on the economic history of the United States, including topics in the Great Depression, the residential mortgage market, and the Federal Reserve System. Rose joined the Chicago Fed in 2018, following nine years with the Board of Governors. At the Fed, he has supported several policy efforts. Most recently, he led the U.S. Financial Stability Oversight Council’s staff work on digital assets, including the production of its 2022 report on digital asset financial risks and regulation. Rose’s appointment as Historian began November 1, 2022. 

Providing economic information to the public is an important mission for the St. Louis Fed started by former St. Louis Fed Research Director Homer Jones in 1958. In addition to hosting the Federal Reserve Historian, the St. Louis Fed is responsible for FederalReserveHistory.org, FRED, the economic education site econlowdown.org, and FRASER (the Fed's digital library of economic and financial history). 

Written as of November 2022 and updated September 2024. See disclaimer and update policy.