On what date did the Dow Jones first close above its pre-1929-crash peak again?

The Dow Jones first closed above its pre-1929-crash peak again on 23 November 1954.

The Dow had reached a closing high of 381.17 on 3 September 1929. After the Wall Street crash and the subsequent Great Depression, it lost nearly 89% of its value before bottoming in July 1932. The market then recovered unevenly, but the economic damage and the interruption caused by World War II delayed a full return to the old peak.

Crossing the 1929 high in November 1954 showed how long recovery could take after a major financial collapse. It was roughly 25 years after the original peak. The date is often cited as evidence that long-term stock-market recovery can take decades, even when the market eventually surpasses its earlier level.

The recovery date does not mean the U.S. economy had been weak continuously for 25 years. Economic growth, wartime production, inflation, and changing company composition all affected the index during that period. It also refers specifically to the Dow’s nominal level, not inflation-adjusted wealth.