Myths and Legends of the World

Black Friday arrives every year, and with it sometimes comes a bit of misinformation. As shoppers prep their wish lists, separating the Black Friday facts from fiction can make the day that much more successful. It makes sense that the term “Black Friday” might refer to the single day of the year when retail companies finally go “into the black” (i.e. make a profit). The day after Thanksgiving is, of course, when crowds of turkey-stuffed shoppers descend on stores all over the country to take advantage of the season’s biggest holiday bargains. But the real story behind Black Friday is a bit more complicated—and darker—than that. The first recorded use of the term “Black Friday” was applied not to holiday shopping but to financial crisis: specifically, the crash of the U.S. gold market on September 24, 1869. Two notoriously ruthless Wall Street financiers, Jay Gould and Jim Fisk, worked together to buy up as much as they could of the nation’s gold, hoping to drive the price sk

Have a great Thanksgiving with your family and friends and tomorrow we will explore the myth of the American Purge better known as Black Friday.