The History of Black Friday

Sordid Origins

The connotation of “black” is most often seen in history along with some sort of calamitous event. Black Friday in American history began on September 24th, 1869. On that day, after a time of rampant speculation and a volatile market, several individuals attempted to corner the gold market for themselves.

Sordid Origins

With the wide fluctuations that occurred afterwards, fortunes were gained and lost in a day, and while President Grant stepped in to counteract the machinations, his own brother and many others were ruined by the day’s events. Interestingly, most mentions of “Black Friday” up until 1869 had to do with economic losses. Since then, the next mention only had to do with economic success, though it would take a long time to become relevant again.