This Day In Market History: J.P. Morgan Ships In Gold To Bail Out The US

Each day, Benzinga takes a look back at a notable market-related moment that happened on this date.

What Happened

On Nov. 6, 1907, a ship carrying $7 million in gold arrived from London to revive the floundering U.S. economy.

Where The Market Was

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was in the midst of a year-to-year freefall from 94.25 to 59.61. The S&P 500 was nearing its 1907 nadir of 6.25 after starting the year around 9.56.

What Else Was Going On In The World

The first taxi had recently begun operation in New York City, and the Ringling Brothers were about to buy Barnum & Bailey circus.

JP Morgan Saves The Day

The month-long financial crisis known as the Panic of 1907 had begun in October with a near 50% slide in the New York Stock Exchange. Throughout the country, a number of banks and businesses filed for bankruptcy.

At the urging of President Theodore Roosevelt, J. Pierpont Morgan intervened. The founder of JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) bolstered the banking system with an infusion of his own money and an acquisition of a dying company deeply tied to the markets. He also led a lock-in roundtable of bankers to generate potential solutions.

Morgan’s final effort was to coordinate the import of gold from London. A boat carrying $7 million of gold arrived Nov. 6, and another with $10 million arrived shortly after. The market began to rebound Nov. 16.

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Photo: A political cartoon from Puck magazine by Udo Keppler titled "The Helping Hand" that parodies Émile Renouf's 1881 painting of the same name. Cartoon shows Uncle Sam and J.P. Morgan rowing a boat.