The 1873 financial collapse that spread from Vienna to Europe and the United States was the Panic of 1873.
The crisis began after the Vienna Stock Exchange crash in May 1873. Speculative investment in railways and property had created fragile financial conditions, and the failure of the bank Jay Cooke & Company in the United States in September intensified the panic.
The downturn contributed to a long period of economic weakness often called the Long Depression. Banks failed, investment contracted, and railway construction slowed sharply. The effects differed by country, and historians debate the exact dates and severity of the depression.
The panic also influenced financial regulation and public debate about monetary policy. In the United States, the collapse of Jay Cooke's firm was especially significant because it had helped finance the Northern Pacific Railway and government debt.