Effects in The U.S.
The failure of the Jay Cooke bank, followed quickly by that of Henry Clews, set off a chain reaction of bank failures and temporarily closed the New York stock market. Factories began to lay off workers as the United States slipped into depression. The effects of the panic were quickly felt in New York, and more slowly in Chicago; Virginia City, Nevada; and San Francisco.
The New York Stock Exchange closed for ten days starting 20 September. By November 1873 some 55 of the nation's railroads had failed, with another 60 going bankrupt by the first anniversary of the crisis. Construction of new rail lines, formerly one of the backbones of the economy, plummeted from 7500 miles of track in 1872 to just 1600 miles in 1875. A total of 18,000 businesses failed between 1873 and 1875, with unemployment topping 14% by the end of the period. Building construction was halted, wages were cut, real estate values fell and corporate profits vanished.
Read more about this topic: Panic Of 1873
Famous quotes containing the word effects:
“One of the effects of a safe and civilised life is an immense oversensitiveness which makes all the primary emotions somewhat disgusting. Generosity is as painful as meanness, gratitude as hateful as ingratitude.”
—George Orwell (1903–1950)