The U.S. financial panic of 1869 caused partly by gold speculation was called Black Friday.
Financiers Jay Gould and James Fisk attempted to corner the U.S. gold market by acquiring gold while hoping the federal government would not sell its reserves. Their strategy pushed gold prices sharply higher. When the government intervened and sold gold on September 24, 1869, the price collapsed, creating turmoil in financial markets.
The panic damaged investors and businesses connected to the speculation, although the broader economic effects were less severe than those of later American panics. President Ulysses S. Grant and Treasury Secretary George S. Boutwell were involved in the decision to release government gold, which broke the attempted corner.
This Black Friday is distinct from the 1929 Black Tuesday and the 1987 Black Monday. The shared “black” label describes a disastrous financial day, not a single continuing market-crash series.