http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_recessions_in_the_United_States
replaced by the Second Bank of the United States, which lasted from 1816–36.[9]
Name
Dates[nb 2]
Duration
Time since previous recession
Characteristics
Copper Panic of 1789
1789–1793
~4 years
~0 years
Loss of confidence in copper coins due to debasement and counterfeiting led to commercial freeze up that halted the economy of several northern States and was not alleviated until the introduction of new paper money to restore confidence.
Panic of 1797
1796–1799
~3 years
~4 years
Just as a land speculation bubble was bursting, deflation from the Bank of England (which was facing insolvency because of the cost of Great Britain's involvement in the French Revolutionary Wars) crossed to North America and disrupted commercial and real estate markets in the United States and the Caribbean, and caused a major financial panic.[11] Prosperity continued in the south, but economic activity was stagnant in the north for three years. The young United States engaged in the Quasi-War with France.[9]
1802–1804 recession
1802–1804
~2 years
~3 years
A boom of war-time activity led to a decline after the Peace of Amiens ended the war between the United Kingdom and France. Commodity prices fell dramatically. Trade was disrupted by pirates, leading to the First Barbary War.[9]
Depression of 1807
1807–1810
~3 years
~3 years
The Embargo Act of 1807 was passed by the United States Congress under President Thomas Jefferson as tensions increased with the United Kingdom. Along with trade restrictions imposed by the British, shipping-related industries were hard hit. The Federalists fought the embargo and allowed smuggling to take place in New England. Trade volumes, commodity prices and securities prices all began to fall. Macon's Bill Number 2 ended the embargoes in May 1810, and a recovery started.[9]
1812 recession
1812
~6 months
~18 months
The United States entered a brief recession at the beginning of 1812. The decline was brief primarily because the United States soon increased production to fight the War of 1812, which began June 18, 1812.[12]
1815–21 depression
1815–1821
~6 years
~3 years
Shortly after the war ended on March 23, 1815, the United States entered a period of financial panic as bank notes rapidly depreciated because of inflation following the war. The 1815 panic was followed by several years of mild depression, and then a major financial crisis – the Panic of 1819, which featured widespread foreclosures, bank failures, unemployment, a collapse in real estate prices, and a slump in agriculture and manufacturing.[9]
1822–1823 recession
1822–1823
~1 year
~1 year
After only a mild recovery following the lengthy 1815–21 depression, commodity prices hit a peak in March 1822 and began to fall. Many businesses failed, unemployment rose and an increase in imports worsened the trade balance.[9]
1825–1826 recession
1825–1826
~1 year
~2 years
The Panic of 1825, a stock crash following a bubble of speculative investments in Latin America led to a decline in business activity in the United States and England. The recession coincided with a major panic, the date of which may be more easily determined than general cycle changes associated with other recessions.[8]
1828–1829 recession
1828–1829
~1 year
~2 years
In 1826, England forbade the United States to trade with English colonies, and in 1827, the United States adopted a counter-prohibition. Trade declined, just as credit became tight for manufacturers in New England.[9]
1833–34 recession
1833–1834
~1 year
~4 years
The United States' economy declined moderately in 1833–34. News accounts of the time confirm the slowdown. The subsequent expansion was driven by land speculation
US recessions, Free Banking Era to the Great Depression
Name
Dates[nb 2]
Duration
Time since previous recession
Business activity [nb 3]
Trade & industrial activity[nb 3]
Characteristics
1836–1838 recession
—
~2 years
~2 years
—32.8%
—
A sharp downturn in the American economy was caused by bank failures and lack of confidence in the paper currency. Speculation markets were greatly affected when American banks stopped payment in specie (gold and silver coinage).[3][14] Over 600 banks failed in this period. In the South, the cotton market completely collapsed.[9]
late 1839–late 1843 recession
—
~4 years
~1 year
-34.3%
—
This was one of the longest and deepest depressions. It was a period of pronounced deflation and massive default on debt. The Cleveland Trust Company Index showed the economy spent 68 months below its trend and only 9 months above it. The Index declined 34.3% during this depression.[15]
1845–late 1846 recession
—
~1 year
~2 years
−5.9%
—
This recession was mild enough that it may have only been a slowdown in the growth cycle. One theory holds that this would have been a recession, except the United States began to gear up for the Mexican–American War, which began April 25, 1846.[13]
1847–48 recession
late 1847–late 1848
~1 year
~1 year
−19.7%
—
The Cleveland Trust Company Index declined 19.7% during 1847 and 1848. It is associated with a financial crisis in Great Britain.[15][16]
1853–54 recession
1853 –Dec 1854
~1 year
~5 years
−18.4%
—
Interest rates rose in this period, contributing to a decrease in railroad investment. Security prices fell during this period. With the exception of falling business investment there is little evidence of contraction in this period.[3]
Panic of 1857
June 1857–Dec 1858
1 year
6 months
2 years
6 months
−23.1%
—
Failure of the Ohio Life Insurance and Trust Company burst a European speculative bubble in United States' railroads and caused a loss of confidence in American banks. Over 5,000 businesses failed within the first year of the Panic, and unemployment was accompanied by protest meetings in urban areas. This is the earliest recession to which the NBER assigns specific months (rather than years) for the peak and trough.[5][8][17]
1860–61 recession
Oct 1860–June 1861
8 months
1 year
10 months
−14.5%
—
There was a recession before the American Civil War, which began April 12, 1861. Zarnowitz says the data generally show a contraction occurred in this period, but it was quite mild.[15] A financial panic was narrowly averted in 1860 by the first use of clearing house certificates between banks.[9]
1865–67 recession
April 1865–Dec 1867
2 years
8 months
3 years
10 months
−23.8%
—
The American Civil War ended in April 1865, and the country entered a lengthy period of general deflation that lasted until 1896. The United States occasionally experienced periods of recession during the Reconstruction era. Production increased in the years following the Civil War, but the country still had financial difficulties.[15] The post-war period coincided with a period of some international financial instability.
1869–70 recession
June 1869–Dec 1870
1 year
6 months
1 year
6 months
−9.7%
—
A few years after the Civil War, a short recession occurred. It was unusual since it came amid a period when railroad investment was greatly accelerating, even producing the First Transcontinental Railroad. The railroads built in this period opened up the interior of the country, giving birth to the Farmers' movement. The recession may be explained partly by ongoing financial difficulties following the war, which discouraged businesses from building up inventories.[15] Several months into the recession, there was a major financial panic.
Panic of 1873 and the Long Depression
Oct 1873 –
Mar 1879
5 years
5 months
2 years
10 months
−33.6% (−27.3%) [nb 3]
—
Economic problems in Europe prompted the failure of Jay Cooke & Company, the largest bank in the United States, which burst the post-Civil War speculative bubble. The Coinage Act of 1873 also contributed by immediately depressing the price of silver, which hurt North American mining interests.[18] The deflation and wage cuts of the era led to labor turmoil, such as the Great Railroad Strike of 1877. In 1879, the United States returned to the gold standard with the Specie Payment Resumption Act. This is the longest period of economic contraction recognized by the NBER. The Long Depression is sometimes held to be the entire period from 1873–96.[19][20]
1882–85 recession
Mar 1882 –
May 1885
3 years
2 months
3 years
−32.8%
−24.6%
Like the Long Depression that preceded it, the recession of 1882–85 was more of a price depression than a production depression. From 1879 to 1882, there had been a boom in railroad construction which came to an end, resulting in a decline in both railroad construction and in related industries, particularly iron and steel.[21] A major economic event during the recession was the Panic of 1884.
1887–88 recession
Mar 1887 –
April 1888
1 year
1 month
1 year
10 months
−14.6%
−8.2%
Investments in railroads and buildings weakened during this period. This slowdown was so mild that it is not always considered a recession. Contemporary accounts apparently indicate it was considered a slight recession.[22]
1890–91 recession
July 1890 –
May 1891
10 months
1 year
5 months
−22.1%
−11.7%
Although shorter than the recession in 1887–88 and still modest, a slowdown in 1890–91 was somewhat more pronounced than the preceding recession. International monetary disturbances are blamed for this recession, such as the Panic of 1890 in the United Kingdom.[22]
Panic of 1893
Jan 1893 –
June 1894
1 year
5 months
1 year
8 months
−37.3%
−29.7%
Failure of the United States Reading Railroad and withdrawal of European investment led to a stock market and banking collapse. This Panic was also precipitated in part by a run on the gold supply. The Treasury had to issue bonds to purchase enough gold. Profits, investment and income all fell, leading to political instability, the height of the U.S. populist movement and the Free Silver movement.[23]
Panic of 1896
Dec 1895 –
June 1897
1 year
6 months
1 year
6 months
−25.2%
−20.8%
The period of 1893–97 is seen as a generally depressed cycle that had a short spurt of growth in the middle, following the Panic of 1893. Production shrank and deflation reigned.[22]
1899–1900 recession
June 1899 –
Dec 1900
1 year
6 months
2 years
−15.5%
−8.8%
This was a mild recession in the period of general growth beginning after 1897. Evidence for a recession in this period does not show up in some annual data series.[22]
1902–04 recession
Sep 1902 –Aug 1904
1 year
11 months
1 year
9 months
−16.2%
−17.1%
Though not severe, this downturn lasted for nearly two years and saw a distinct decline in the national product. Industrial and commercial production both declined, albeit fairly modestly.[22] The recession came about a year after a 1901 stock crash.
Panic of 1907
May 1907 –
June 1908
1 year
1 month
2 years
9 months
−29.2%
−31.0%
A run on Knickerbocker Trust Company deposits on October 22, 1907, set events in motion that would lead to a severe monetary contraction. The fallout from the panic led to Congress creating the Federal Reserve System.[24]
Panic of 1910–1911
Jan 1910 –
Jan 1912
2 years
1 year
7 months
−14.7%
−10.6%
This was a mild but lengthy recession. The national product grew by less than 1%, and commercial activity and industrial activity declined. The period was also marked by deflation.[22]
Recession of 1913–1914
Jan 1913–Dec 1914
1 year
11 months
1 year
−25.9%
−19.8%
Productions and real income declined during this period and were not offset until the start of World War I increased demand.[22] Incidentally, the Federal Reserve Act was signed during this recession, creating the Federal Reserve System, the culmination of a sequence of events following the Panic of 1907.[24]
Post-World War I recession
Aug 1918 –
March 1919
7 months
3 years
8 months
−24.5%
−14.1%
Severe hyperinflation in Europe took place over production in North America. This was a brief but very sharp recession and was caused by the end of wartime production, along with an influx of labor from returning troops. This, in turn, caused high unemployment.[25]
Depression of 1920–21
Jan 1920 –
July 1921
1 year
6 months
10 months
−38.1%
−32.7%
The 1921 recession began a mere 10 months after the post-World War I recession, as the economy continued working through the shift to a peacetime economy. The recession was short, but extremely painful. The year 1920 was the single most deflationary year in American history; production, however, did not fall as much as might be expected from the deflation. GNP may have declined between 2.5 and 7 percent, even as wholesale prices declined by 36.8%.[26] The economy had a strong recovery following the recession.[27]
1923–24 recession
May 1923 –
June 1924
1 year
2 months
2 years
−25.4%
−22.7%
From the depression of 1920–21 until the Great Depression, an era dubbed the Roaring Twenties, the economy was generally expanding. Industrial production declined in 1923–24, but on the whole this was a mild recession.[22]
1926–27 recession
Oct 1926 –
Nov 1927
1 year
1 month
2 years
3 months
−12.2%
−10.0%
This was an unusual and mild recession, thought to be caused largely because Henry Ford closed production in his factories for six months to switch from production of the Model T to the Model A. Charles P. Kindleberger says the period from 1925 to the start of the Great Depression is best thought of as a boom, and this minor recession just proof that the boom "was not general, uninterrupted or extensive".[28]
[edit] Great Depression onward
