Panic+of+1873

// Panic of 1873- Shanae Jackson //

 [Panic of 1873] The Panic of 1873 was a post-war financial crisis 

The Civil War was over and people were tying to rebuild there lives and looked turns the leader of there nation. After the Civil War railroad production was booming. Business men thinking that this would continue started to invest, borrowing money, and started up new facilities as quickly as possible. Banks and other industries were also putting their money in railroads. While business was expanding the currency was contracting. Paper money was running low, and this was leading to the crash. So when the banking firm of Jay Cooke and Company, a firm heavily invested in railroad construction, closed its doors on September 18, 1873, a major economic panic swept the nation. (Yahoo Answers).

Jay Cooke and Company handled most of the government securities and they were just the start. The collapse was disastrous for the nation’s economy. People in every rank of life were stricken with complete ruin. The public started to blame the president who at the time was Grant and Congress for what was happening. They seemed to think that the two had mishandled the economy, what the didn’t know was that the cause was really mush broader then they expected. The over building of the railroad system more then any other event mostly led to the panic and the depression that followed. Historian call this the Long or First Depression some even believe that it was worst than the one that come later in the 1930’s. The economy didn’t really recover until 1878. The road was not an easy one. The Panic brought a feud between labors and manufacturing. The President who was now Rutherford B.Hayes had to send his troops to stop the strikes. The feud it self lasted for year. As the economy recovered it started to leave a mark. An effect of the Panic was that even after the recovery had started the wage of everyone was still cut. The Panic effects are still felt today. Black Friday is the biggest, It got the name because of September 18, 1873 was a Friday. On this date companies make mark-downs on there products. The Panic didn’t seem to teach any one a lesson because it failed again 4 times one just 80 years after the one 1873. The cycle continued 2 more time until the Great Depression in the 1930’s. This is what some call a natural cycle.

In conclusion, During the Panic more than 10% of Americans were unemployed. There was mobs and famine. Even after it was over the government refused to help people causing them to again turn against and vote against it. In the 1840’s when you could really tell it was recovering tariff were being formed and a compromise was reached to help the American Worker again. The cycle continues today withe the stock market and bailout plans this echos the past.

Works Cited · // ClassZone //. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 June 2009. . ·  "Panic of 1837 - Ohio History Central - A product of the Ohio Historical Society." // Ohio //// History Central - An Online Encyclopedia of //// Ohio //// History - //// Ohio //// Historical Society //. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 June 2009. . ·  "The Panic of 1837: The Onset of America's First Depression | Suite101.com." //American History: Wars, settlement, industry, the railroad, and north-south politics from the// // Pacific Northwest //// to the //// Great Plains ////, //// California //// to the eastern seaboard, 1600 to today. | Suite101.com //. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 June 2009. . · "What causes the panic of 1873? - Yahoo! Answers." //Yahoo! Answers - Home//. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 June 2009. .