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The term "Black Friday" is often associated with the shopping day after Thanksgiving in the United States, but historically, it has been used to describe several different events. The
1910 Black Friday refers to a significant financial crisis that took place in the United States on Friday, September 16, 1910. This crisis was centered around the stock manipulation schemes of
Thomas W. Lawson, a prominent financier and author.
Lawson had been promoting the stock of the
United States Steel Corporation (U.S. Steel), which was at the time the largest steel company in the world. He had been buying up shares and encouraging others to do so, creating an artificial demand that inflated the stock's price. However, on that fateful day, Lawson and his associates began to sell off their shares, which led to a rapid decline in the stock's value. This triggered a panic sell-off among other investors, causing the stock market to plummet and resulting in significant financial losses for many.
The aftermath of the 1910 Black Friday led to increased calls for financial regulation and contributed to the establishment of the
Federal Reserve System in 1913, which was designed to help prevent such crises in the future.
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