Which event marked the beginning of the Great Depression in the United States?

The Stock Market Crash of 1929 is widely recognized as the event that marked the beginning of the Great Depression in the United States. This catastrophic collapse of stock prices, which occurred primarily in late October 1929, eroded consumer confidence and triggered widespread economic turmoil.

Following the crash, financial institutions began to fail, banks collapsed, and millions of investors lost their savings overnight. The event set off a chain reaction that led to a severe contraction in consumer spending and business investment, resulting in widespread unemployment and a significant decline in production.

While the Dust Bowl, the New Deal implementation, and the unemployment crisis in 1932 were all critical events related to the Great Depression, they came after the initial collapse of the stock market. The Dust Bowl, which involved severe droughts that devastated farming in the Midwest, exacerbated the economic situation but did not initiate the Great Depression. The New Deal was a series of programs launched by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in response to the economic crisis, focusing on recovery and reform but occurring as an aftermath rather than a precursor. The unemployment crisis of 1932 was a result of the ongoing economic decline that began with the stock market crash, rather than the start of the Great Depression itself. Thus, the