What was the first major U.S. stock-market crash day in 1929 commonly called?

The first major U.S. stock-market crash day in 1929 was commonly called Black Thursday. It occurred on October 24, 1929, when panic selling hit the New York Stock Exchange after a long period of speculative buying. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell sharply during the session, although large banks and investment firms temporarily supported prices.

Black Thursday is often discussed alongside Black Monday, October 28, and Black Tuesday, October 29. Black Tuesday became the most famous day because selling intensified and the Dow suffered another severe decline. The three dates were stages of the same rapidly worsening market collapse, not separate unrelated crashes.

The 1929 crash followed a boom fueled by easy credit, widespread share speculation, and the popular use of margin. Its economic effects deepened during the Great Depression, although the crash itself did not single-handedly cause every feature of that worldwide downturn. The Dow did not regain its 1929 peak until 1954.