By 1935, the Great Depression had brought America to its knees. Millions were unemployed. Families lost their homes. Banks had failed. For the first time in the nation's history, there was a growing demand for a social safety net.
On August 14, 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Social Security Act into law. The goal was to provide a modest income to elderly workers - it was not designed to create a national identification system.
A Number Just to Track Earnings
On November 24, 1936, the Social Security Board began assigning Social Security Numbers (SSNs). The first cards carried the warning: "For Social Security Purposes - Not For Identification".
Mission Creep
During WWII, SSNs tracked military personnel. In 1943, an executive order required federal agencies to use them. In 1961, the IRS began using SSNs as taxpayer IDs. Banks, employers, and DMVs followed, making it the default identifier by the 1970s-1980s.
A De Facto National ID
Today, the SSN is the de facto national ID in the United States. There is no federal law making it one - institutions demand it. What began as a ledger entry now carries weight its creators never intended.