October 24, 1929, the first major panic session of the Wall Street Crash, is known as Black Thursday.
On that day, selling surged on the New York Stock Exchange and trading volume reached a record level for the period. The market’s decline alarmed the public and financial institutions, although prominent bankers temporarily tried to restore confidence by buying selected shares.
The intervention produced a short-lived recovery, but it did not end the underlying weakness. More severe collapses followed on Black Monday, October 28, and Black Tuesday, October 29. These names refer to specific trading days rather than the entire crash.
The crash unfolded after years of rising share prices, widespread margin buying, and optimism about economic growth. Its consequences were amplified by bank failures, falling production, unemployment, and international financial pressures during the early 1930s.