June 27 1893 – 13 Tammuz 5653
New York
The Dow Jones Share Index took its second nosedive in six
weeks, exacerbating financial panic and prompting massive bank
withdrawals. The booming U.S. economy sank into a depression,
recovering only in 1897. Among the causes of the crisis: a drop in
wheat prices (due to cheap imports) and a silver surplus as mining
expanded. The railroad speculation bubble had burst as well after
company closures. Soup kitchens opened, and Jewish millionaire
Nathan Straus built homeless shelters and distributed one-cent
meals. Straus had pioneered milk pasteurization to reduce infant
mortality, and now his milk stations also sold coal for a pittance.
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