Panic of 1893
United States 1893
Synopsis
A financial panic in May 1893 led the United States into the worst economic depression it had experienced up to that point in its history. Following the collapse of several Wall Street brokerage houses, over 600 banks and 16,000 businesses failed by the end of the year. National unemployment reached an estimated 20 percent in the first year of the crisis, and only a few cities managed to provide relief of any kind. The agricultural sector, already experiencing a slump, also felt the aftereffects of the panic. As thousands of farmers lost their land, the Populist Party gained momentum as a voice of reform and government intervention in the economy. The party reached a peak in 1896 when it endorsed the Democratic candidate for president, William Jennings Bryan, for office. Although he lost the election, Bryan's "Cross of Gold" speech in support of a free silver monetary policy became the most electrifying moment in the campaign. Shortly after Bryan's defeat in the election of 1896, the economy began to improve as prices for American crops began to climb. The four-year depression finally lifted but not before giving impetus to a new era of political and economic reforms.
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