Black Thursday 1929: the first day of the stock market crash
The essentials in 30 seconds
- Black Thursday was 24 October 1929, the first day of the stock market crash on Wall Street.
- A record 12.9 million shares traded, and the market lost 11% at the opening bell.
- Bankers from Morgan, Chase, and National City met, and Richard Whitney bid for 25,000 U.S. Steel shares at $205.
- The Dow closed down only 6.38 points, or 2.09%.
- The fall resumed on Monday, 28 October, with a loss of 12.82%.
Black Thursday, 24 October 1929, was the first day of the stock market crash and the day bankers tried to stop it. This guide reads the session in 4 phases, as of October 2026: the opening panic, the record volume, the meeting of 3 bankers, and the close. It belongs to the 1929 stock market crash and sets up the two black days that followed.
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What happened on Black Thursday, 24 October 1929?
Thursday, 24 October 1929 opened a week that changed Wall Street. The Dow had closed at 381.17 on 3 September, and by the end of Thursday it stood near 299, about 22% below that peak, a level this page calculates from the day’s reported loss. The session earned the name Black Thursday because the first panic arrived all at once.
The day followed a sharp decline after Roger Babson’s warning of 5 September. Prices had been wobbling for weeks, so Thursday read as the moment when doubt turned into selling. Two more black days followed, and the crash is the name for all of them taken together.
How bad was the opening bell on Black Thursday?
The opening bell set the tone. The market lost 11% of its value at the opening bell, according to Wikipedia, and orders to sell arrived faster than buyers could answer. A margin buyer who had put down 10% in cash was wiped out by a fall of 10%, so the opening loss of 11% pushed many accounts past that line.
That mechanism explains the speed. Lenders asked for cash or sold collateral, and those sales added to the pressure. By August 1929 brokers had more than $8.5 billion out on loan. The Federal Reserve History essay adds that call loans, made by banks and other lenders to brokers, fuelled the boom.
Why did Black Thursday set a record for shares traded?
A record 12.9 million shares changed hands on Black Thursday. Volume matters because it measures how many orders met the market, and not only where the price ended. A heavy day with a small closing loss shows a fight between sellers and supporters, and Thursday ended as that kind of day.
The record did not last. On Tuesday, 29 October some 16.4 million shares traded, about 27% more than on Thursday, a ratio this page calculates from the 2 volumes. Thursday therefore marks the start of the heavy trading, and Tuesday its peak in the sources used here.
Which bankers met on Black Thursday to support prices?
At midday a group of leading bankers met. Thomas Lamont of the Morgan bank, Albert Wiggin of Chase National Bank, and Charles Mitchell of National City Bank agreed to support the market. The Federal Reserve History essay adds that Mitchell and a group of bankers publicly bought blocks of shares at high prices in October 1929.
Their aim was confidence more than arithmetic. A visible buyer with large resources tells small holders that the fall has a floor. The meeting also shows how concentrated finance was in 1929, since 3 institutions could stand in for the market in a single afternoon.
What did the U.S. Steel bid change on Black Thursday?
Richard Whitney, acting for the group, placed a bid for 25,000 U.S. Steel shares at $205, above the market price. A bid above the market is a signal: it says a buyer will pay more than anyone currently asks. The Dow closed down only 6.38 points, or 2.09%, after the opening loss of 11%.
The gap between 11% and 2.09% is almost 9 percentage points, a figure this page calculates, and it shows how far the support lifted the index from its opening level. The lift was real and short. The Federal Reserve History essay concludes that the bankers’ effort failed, and the next 2 sessions confirm it.
Did the Federal Reserve step in during the Black Thursday panic?
The Federal Reserve Bank of New York also stood ready. As the crash unfolded it bought government securities on the open market, expedited discount window lending, lowered its discount rate, and assured banks that it would supply needed reserves.
The Federal Reserve Board and several Reserve Banks complained that New York had exceeded its authority. Black Thursday therefore also marks the start of a policy dispute about how far a central bank should go to support markets, a dispute that the weeks after the crash only sharpened.
Why did the calm after Black Thursday not last?
The relief ended over the weekend. On Monday, 28 October the Dow fell 38.33 points, or 12.82%, to close at 260.64, and on Tuesday, 29 October it lost another 11.73%. Together the 2 sessions removed 23.05% of the index, more than 10 times the loss of Thursday.
Black Thursday looks mild beside them, yet it set the pattern: a scare, a rescue, and a hope that the rescue would hold. By mid-November 1929 the Dow had lost almost half its value, so the hope proved short.
What does Black Thursday teach a reader about market support?
A reader can take 3 lessons from Black Thursday. Support from large buyers can slow a fall for a session, and it cannot change the leverage that drives sellers. Volume deserves as much attention as price. And a calm close can hide a fragile market, as the Monday that followed showed.
As of October 2026 the same lessons apply to any fast fall. The EQOS Asia simulator lets you test how a portfolio behaves in a correction and in a crash, and a 30-minute pre-diagnostic with EQOS Asia applies the scoring to your own exposure. This page is general information, not investment advice.
See also in this guide
Frequently asked questions
What was Black Thursday in 1929?
Black Thursday was 24 October 1929, the first day of the Wall Street crash. A record 12.9 million shares traded, the market lost 11% at the opening bell, and the Dow closed down only 6.38 points, or 2.09%, after bankers placed a large bid for U.S. Steel shares.
Who tried to stop the fall on Black Thursday?
Thomas Lamont of Morgan, Albert Wiggin of Chase National Bank, and Charles Mitchell of National City Bank met, and Richard Whitney placed a bid for 25,000 U.S. Steel shares at $205. The Federal Reserve History essay says the effort failed, and the Dow fell 12.82% on Monday.
Why did the Dow close down only 2.09% on Black Thursday?
The bankers’ bid for 25,000 U.S. Steel shares at $205 lifted confidence during the day, so the loss of 11% at the opening bell shrank to 2.09% at the close. The sources report the sequence, and the close shows that the support worked for 1 session.
How did Black Thursday volume compare with Black Tuesday?
Black Thursday saw a record 12.9 million shares, and Black Tuesday saw some 16.4 million shares 5 days later, about 27% more. The 27% figure is calculated from the 2 volumes. Both days show how heavy the selling pressure became in the last week of October 1929.
Test your knowledge
1. On which date was Black Thursday?
- 24 October 1929
- 29 October 1929
- 3 September 1929
Show the answer
24 October 1929.
2. How many shares traded on Black Thursday?
- 2.9 million
- 12.9 million
- 29 million
Show the answer
12.9 million.
3. How much did the market lose at the opening bell?
- 1%
- 5%
- 11%
Show the answer
11%.
4. What did Richard Whitney bid for?
- 25,000 U.S. Steel shares
- 25 bank charters
- 250 gold bars
Show the answer
25,000 U.S. Steel shares.
5. Where did the Dow close relative to the previous day?
- Down 12.82%
- Down 2.09%
- Down 23.05%
Show the answer
Down 2.09%.
About the author
Stéphane Jambu
President, EQOS Forecast Asia
Stéphane Jambu leads EQOS Forecast Asia and works as a consultant in e-commerce, search visibility, and AI. LinkedIn profile
Sources: EQOS Asia simulator (eqos-asia.com/simulator.html) and contact page (eqos-asia.com/contact.html), Federal Reserve History (federalreservehistory.org/essays/stock-market-crash-of-1929), Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wall_Street_crash_of_1929), consulted on 22 October 2026. Page updated on 22 October 2026.