I think the tales of Wall Street financiers plunging to their deaths in are probably well known.

From Random Facts - The Great Depression:. It is said that the clerks of one hotel even started asking new guests if they needed a room for sleeping or jumping. From the Great Depression to the Wizard of Oz.

THE JUMPERS OF '29 - The Washington Post

But according to John Kenneth Galbraith's The Great Crash, this is a myth. In the wake of Black Thursday London newspapers reported that ruined speculators were throwing themselves from windows, but Galbraith asserts there was no substance to these claims of widespread suicides. The heavy lifting has been done by The Straight Dope.

To start with, let's look at the quality of your two conflicting sources. One is a respected academic book by a world-class economist.

The other is a website that by admission devotes itself to "random facts and trivia". Guess which is going to be more reliable. Interestingly Galbraith's book is one of the main sources used by The Straight Dope.

That's not to say that a few failed investors, executives, etc. But the suicides happened all around the country, didn't necessarily involve jumping out the window, and for the most part didn't take place immediately following the crash. The Year of the Great Crash historian William K.

Klingaman says asphyxiation by gas was the most common method of doing oneself in, although there was considerable variety.

Did brokers really throw themselves out of office windows in the Wall Street crash? | Notes and Queries | dakoxok.web.fc2.com

Several well-publicized suicides did fulfill the stereotype. Winston Churchill, visiting New York, was awakened the day after Black Tuesday by the noise of a crowd outside the Savoy-Plaza Hotel. In defense of Randomfacts, it is entirely possible that a few notable jumpers would have been reported as 'a wave' in contemporary sources, but would not make a significant difference to suicide statistics. Quoting from My grandfather killed himself in the '29 crash'the title referring to a grandfather of Roger Graef.

According to the book A Nation in Torment: The Great American Depression, Comedian Eddie Cantor evoked guffaws from audiences when he impersonated a hotel clerk asking a broker whether he wanted a room accurate forecasts usd binary options sleeping or jumping.

Actually, stock market crash suicides 1929 joke is in Eddie Cantor's own book Caught short!: A saga of wailing Wall street. Sign up or log in to customize your list. Stack Exchange Inbox Reputation and Badges. Questions Tags Users Badges Unanswered. Skeptics Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for scientific skepticism.

Join them; it only takes a minute: Here's how it works: Anybody can ask a question Anybody can answer The best answers are voted up and rise to the top. Stock Market Crash of Did Wall Street investors jump off buildings? The Hudsucker Proxy Stock market crash suicides 1929 Random Facts - The Great Depression: Was there a crash related wave of suicides in New York City? Was there a high er number of people plunging to their deaths?

Mark Rogers 5, 7 40 I bet my 2 cents it's a myth. Just my 2 cents. Let's pull some summary quotes from The Straight Dope: DJClayworth 36k 12 DJClayworth -- Me not answering or answering does not make your appeal to authority more valid. RussellSteen So to be clear, you are objecting to me using Galbraith as a source why?

Because he's too respected?

Because he's too well known? Because he's an academic? Because he actually studied the US death statistics and reached a conclusion? The Great American Depression, Comedian Eddie Cantor evoked guffaws from audiences when he impersonated a hotel clerk asking a broker whether he wanted a room for sleeping or jumping Actually, the joke is in Eddie Cantor's own book Caught short!: A saga of wailing Wall street So that portion of the quote in the OP is not accurate history.

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