The History of Black Friday: From the Stock Market Crash to the Present

With leftover candy from Halloween reaching it's end we immediately turns our thoughts to Thanksgiving and all that it entails. Turkey, stuffing, gravy, mashed potatoes, football, pumpkin pie and passing out in front of the TV with our bellies full.

However as some of us are relaxing after dinner, savvy shoppers and bargain seekers are making their final preparations for the day that officially launches the Christmas shopping season. Much like a full scale military attack, the precision is flawless. Lists are made. Ads are scoured. The objective: get everything for Christmas for half the price and do it all before the sun rises! Failure is not an option.

It's called Black Friday. Every year the Friday after Thanksgiving people start lining up in front of stores with their lists, their money and their game faces on as early as 3 and 4a.m. When the doors finally open, usually at 5a.m., it's a grab and dash for the limited amount of the big ticket items with their drastically slashed prices.

Parents race to the must have toys of the season, shoulder to shoulder with other parents out for the same item. It's the busiest and most hectic day in the retail year. And while it may be high in consumer traffic, it's not the highest in profit. The Saturday before Christmas takes the honors for most money spent on one day by holiday shoppers.

So where did the term 'Black Friday' come from? History has shown many 'Black' days, most with dire consequences. Black Tuesday refers to the 1929 stock market crash. Black Friday in January 1939 refers to Australia's day of horrible and devastating fires. In September 1869 the U.S. underwent a great financial crisis and termed the day Black Friday. Historically Black Fridays have never been good events.

In 1975 the shopping craze that followed Thanksgiving turned into Black Friday, in reference to the hectic crowds and horrendous traffic. Despite a slipping economy shoppers still came out in full force that year and caused several newspapers to call the day 'Black Friday', and thus the tradition began.