Which 1893 U.S. financial panic triggered a major stock-market crash and depression?

The 1893 U.S. financial panic that triggered a major stock-market crash and depression was the Panic of 1893.

The panic began after the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad declared bankruptcy in February 1893, followed by the collapse of the National Cordage Company in May. Investors rushed to sell securities, while banks and businesses failed across the United States. The New York Stock Exchange experienced severe losses and falling confidence spread through the wider economy.

The crisis was closely linked to concerns about the U.S. Treasury’s gold reserves and the debate over whether the country should maintain a strict gold standard or expand silver coinage. A run on gold eventually forced the Treasury to seek a major private loan arranged by financier J. P. Morgan in 1895.

The Panic of 1893 caused a deep economic depression, with high unemployment and widespread railroad failures. It is sometimes confused with the Panic of 1873, another major U.S. crash, but the two occurred two decades apart.