Which U.S. president ordered Treasury gold sales during the 1869 Black Friday panic?

Ulysses S. Grant ordered Treasury gold sales during the 1869 Black Friday panic.

Grant became concerned that Jay Gould and James Fisk were attempting to corner the gold market. Their scheme pushed gold prices upward and created the risk that the resulting speculation would damage merchants, farmers, and the wider economy. Grant consulted advisers and then authorized the Treasury to sell government gold.

On September 24, 1869, the Treasury released $4 million in gold. Gold prices dropped, and the sudden reversal caused severe losses among speculators. The stock market also fell, producing the crisis known as Black Friday.

Grant’s intervention stopped the attempted corner, but the episode generated political controversy. Some critics questioned whether people close to the president had benefited from advance knowledge of government action. The panic is distinct from later crashes named Black Thursday, Black Tuesday, and Black Monday.