The beginning of the Great Depression (in the United States, at least) is usually assumed to be the New York Stock Market crash of October, 1929. Does anyone have a cite as to when it was first referred to as “a depression” or as “the Great Depression?”
Something called Liberalism and Conservatism, 1846-1905 on Google books seems to indicate that when the first “Great Depression” happened (1870s-1890s), it wasn’t until the early yerars of the 20th century when it was termed as such. But in 1934, an article by H. L. Beales called the use of Great Depression for the 19th century downturn into question, compared with what was happening in the world in the 1930s. Perhap, by the early 1930s, writers realised the mantle of “Great Depression” had well and truly passed to the next contender. (These days, I use the term “Long Depression” for the major 19th century one.)
The coinage may have been to parallel the usage of the Great War, as WWI was often referred to in that era.
Depression for an economic downturn is traced to 1793.
In 1932, a book titled “The great depression and beyond”, with the author Lloyd Milner Graves, was published, so it was being called the Great Depression by 1932.