The 1929 US stock market crash is named after Wall Street, the New York street associated with the stock exchange and American finance.
Wall Street runs through Lower Manhattan and became synonymous with the financial institutions concentrated there, especially the New York Stock Exchange. The crash unfolded after years of speculative investing and rapid stock purchases made with borrowed money. When confidence collapsed in October 1929, waves of selling sent share prices plunging.
The most dramatic trading days were Black Thursday on October 24, Black Monday on October 28, and Black Tuesday on October 29. The crash did not single-handedly cause the Great Depression, but it severely damaged banks, businesses, investors, and household wealth. Economic contraction, bank failures, falling demand, and unemployment deepened the crisis during the 1930s.
“Wall Street crash” refers to the financial market collapse, not a crash physically occurring on the street itself. The New York Stock Exchange was located on Broad Street, at the intersection with Wall Street; the street’s name became a broader shorthand for US financial markets.