# Which were the Depressions before the Great Depression?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-were-the-depressions-before-the-great-depression/476955>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [December 12, 2008, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-were-the-depressions-before-the-great-depression/476955 "2008-12-12T23:44:08Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\
**Post date:** [December 12, 2008, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-were-the-depressions-before-the-great-depression/476955/1 "2008-12-12T23:44:08Z")

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So the Great Depression was in the 1930s. But which were the earlier Depressions? I’m assuming events like the South Sea Bubble don’t count.

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**Author:** ![griffin1977](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/977dab/32.png) [@griffin1977](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/griffin1977)\
**Post date:** [December 12, 2008, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-were-the-depressions-before-the-great-depression/476955/2 "2008-12-12T23:46:01Z")

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[Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Depression_(economics))lists two (in addition to the “Great Depression”)…

> [@](#):
>
> Long Depression
> 
> The Long Depression, known at the time as the “Great Depression”, lasted from about 1873 to 1896. It affected much of the world and was contemporary with the Second Industrial Revolution.
> 
> Panic of 1837
> 
> The Panic of 1837 was an American financial crisis, built on a speculative fever[citation needed]. The bubble burst on May 10, 1837 in New York City, when every bank stopped payment in gold and silver coinage. The Panic was followed by a five-year depression, with the failure of banks and record high unemployment levels.