Economic history of the United States
Panic of 1873 created one of the worst and longest depressions in American history, seriously affecting every aspect of the economy and bringing the railroad expansion to a halt. The New York Stock Exchange closed for ten days. Of the country's 364 railroads, 89 went bankrupt, a total of 18,000 businesses failed between 1873 and 1875, unemployment reached 14% by 1876, during a time which became known in Britain as the Long Depression. Politically, the Democrats took control of Congress in 1874, the election of 1876 was deadlocked.
History of taxation in the United States
During the outbreak of the Great Depression in 1930, Congress raised tariffs via the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act on over 20,000 imported goods to record levels, and, in the opinion of most economists, worsened the Great Depression by causing other countries to reciprocate thereby plunging American imports and exports by more than half.