Panic
of
1873
Description
The Panic of 1873 started with Jay Cooke &
Company banking house's bankruptcy. In essence,
this was caused by the formation of too many
railroads all at once. Banks loaned too much money
for industrial projects. Jay Cooke & Company had
been a large funder for bankruptcy. This caused a
depression in North America as well as Europe for 5
years. Europe suffered as well. The price of silver
had dropped. After this, the stock market dropped
and many other banks and businesses failed. The
New York Stock Exchange closed for 10 days as a
result. Around 3 million Americans lost their jobs
as a result of this depression. The problem with this
was that many people had borrowed money that
they could not make back to repay as a result of the
depression. Workers were let off, and wages were
cut. This led to the Great Railroad War, a protest by
railroad workers that ended in over 100 deaths.
Food prices greatly decreased which caused poverty
for farmers in America.
Relations to Panic of 1873
Long Term Effects:
After the Great Railroad War,
there were tensions among
workers towards leaders. This led
to the Populist Party forming in
1892, a group of workers and
farmers who were against
government injustice and wanted
tax reform and a shorter working
day, among other things. Populists
were angry at government and big
business deals that were
occurring. Financial issues
overshadowed Reconstruction
issues in this time period.
Visual
Panic
of
1819
Panic of 1819 is considered the first American
depression that rooted back to the war in 1812. It
was triggered by a collapse in the cotton industry.
Banks throughout the country failed and mortgages
were foreclosed, which forced people out of their
homes. Falling prices impaired agriculture and
manufacturing, which triggered unemployment. All
parts of the country were impacted and the country
did not stabilize until 1824. The cause of this
widespread misery was due to a change towards
more conservative credit policies by Second Bank
of the United States. Northerners reacted by
enacting high tariffs that would protect them from
foreign competition. Southerners, however, began a
long campaign against duties hoping the freer trade
would revive the cotton economy. Westerners, yet
again blamed bankers and speculators.
Both the Panic of 1819 and Panic
of 1873 dealt with financial crisis.
They were both a cause of falling
stocks and prices. Both
depressions left many in America
unemployed and in misery. The
depressions took a few years to
settle down. Similarly, in Panic of
1873, America’s farm economy
was impacted just like the
impaired agriculture in Panic of
1819.
Panic
of
1837
The Panic of 1837 was the second largest American
depression. It was primarily due to President
Andrew Jackson’s actions. The Second Bank of the
United States was the center of the national
economy; however during his presidency, Jackson
distributed the federal funds to the state banks, and
he shut down the Second Bank of the United States.
Furthermore, crop failure and collapse in cotton
prices contributed to the Panic. By the time Van
Buren became president, he Panic of 1837 had
begun. Banks began to close and businesses failed.
Also, people lost their lands. President Buren, like
Thomas Jefferson, was a believer of strong state
governments, and limited federal power. Although
the national funds should have been restored to a
national bank; however President Buren did move
There were many similarities
between the Panic of 1837 and
Panic of 1873. Both depressions
caused numerous business
failures. Furthermore, both
depressions were faced a collapse
in the prices of goods, (cotton for
1873 and food for 1873) resulting
is poverty in America.
the federal funds from smaller state banks to an
independent treasury.
Panic
of
1893
The Panic of 1893 is the worst economic depression
the United States has ever endured. A growing
credit shortage created panic, resulting in a
depression. Over the course of this depression
15,000 businesses, 600 banks, and 74 railroads
failed. There was severe unemployment and widescale protesting, which in some cases became very
violent. The economic collapse of the Philadelphia
and Reading Railroads was the first step. Spreading
towards Europe, British investors sold their
American investments and redeemed them for gold.
This fostered a growing American gold loss.
By May 15, stock prices reached an all-time low.
Many major firms, such as the Union-Pacific,
Northern-Pacific and Santa Fe railroads, were
forced to declare bankruptcy. Unemployment
steadily grew, rising from 1 million in August 1893
to 2 million by January 1894, and up to 3 million by
the end of the year. The government had no plan to
end the economic panic. Most relief for those
without jobs was provided by local voluntary
The Panic of 1873 and 1893 are
similar as both involved the shaky
financing of railroads, resulting in
bank failures. In both of these
depressions, the
economy plummeted because of
over-loaning. They both ended up
with unemployment, and failed
businesses, railroads, and banks.
Differences between the two are
that the Panic of 1893 was worse
than the one in 1873 in terms of
the damage done and that the
Panic of 1873 only affected
Americans whereas the Panic of
1893 did have a slight impact on
Europe. It would've had a much
bigger impact if European
investors didn't sell their
American investments and redeem
them for gold.
Great
Depre
ssion
organizations, who were quite overwhelmed by the
need.
The Great Depression was a worldwide economic
depression that occurred after World War II. The
Depression began in in 1930 and lasted until the late
1930s or middle 1940s. The Great Depression
started in the United States after September 4, 1929
when stock prices began to fall and became a major
problem after the stock market crash on October 29,
1929. Other causes of the Great Depression
include a weak banking system, over-production of
goods, over spending, and a bursting credit bubble.
The Great Depression affected both the rich and the
poor. Personal income, tax revenue, profits and
prices dropped while unemployment rose
significantly. Crop prices fell by over 60%, harming
farming and rural areas. Finally, mining, cash
cropping, and logging suffered the most. Some
economies started to recover by the mid-1930s.
The Panic of 1873 and the Great
Depression were caused by stock
market crashes that forced many
businesses to fail. Unemployment
rates increased significantly
during these time periods. The
farm economy was negatively
impacted in both the Great
Depression and the Panic of 1837.
The biggest difference between
the Panic of 1873 and the Great
Depression was that the Panic of
1873 affected solely American
while the Great Depression
affected many other countries.