RETIREMENT SAVINGS HISTORY & TRENDS KAAREN HALL
A Quick History of Retirement Accounts
• In 1875 the first private pension plan in America
was created by the American Express Railroad.
• 1900 – Life expectancy is 49 years old 4 , with
retired workers generally being disabled.
• In 1935 Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Social
Security Act into law. The act provided a fixed
income for the disabled and retired workers aged
65+. This was funded by