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Black Friday Scandal History for kids: President Grant and the Scandals of his
Administration
The Black Friday Scandal
was the first of a series of scandals that rocked the Grant
administration.
There was never the
slightest doubt as to the personal honesty of Ulysses S.
Grant but there were grave doubts as to some of his
decisions whilst in office and his judgment in
making various appointments refer to
Grantism. The Black Friday Scandal
occurred in the post Civil War period at the end of the
Reconstruction Era, a time which was marked by widespread political
corruption and an extension of the infamous
Spoils System.
Black Friday Scandal Facts for kids
Interesting Black Friday Scandal facts for kids are detailed below. The history of Black Friday Scandal is told in a factual sequence consisting of
a series of short facts providing a simple method of relating the
history and events of the Black Friday
Scandal.
Black Friday
Scandal
Facts for kids
Black Friday Scandal
Fact 1: September 24, 1869: It was the first
scandal to taint the Grant administration.
Black Friday Scandal
Fact 2: It was also referred
to as the Gold Panic and the Fisk/Gould scandal
Black Friday Scandal
Fact 3: The Civil War and the
Reconstruction Era had proved extremely costly and the
United States government issued a large amount of paper
money "greenbacks" that was backed by credit rather than
gold.
Black Friday Scandal
Fact 4: Financial speculators
believed that the U.S. Government would buy back the
"greenbacks" with gold.
Black Friday Scandal
Fact 5: A group of financial
speculators, led by Fisk and Gould, attempted to corner
the gold market on the New York Gold Exchange by buying
massive quantities of gold and gold futures, sending the
price of gold sky high.
Black Friday Scandal
Fact 6: The financial
speculators then intended to sell everything at an
enormous profit.
Black Friday Scandal
Fact 7: Gould and Fisk
evolved a plan to gain influence with President Grant.
They recruited Grant’s brother-in-law, a financier named
Abel Corbin, into their group of gold speculators.
Black Friday Scandal
Fact 8: Abel Rathbone Corbin
(1808 – 1881) was an American financier, newspaper
editor and the husband of Virginia Grant who was the
sister of President Grant.
Black Friday Scandal
Fact 9: The next part of the
plan was to stop the US Government from buying gold.
Black Friday Scandal
Fact 10: Abel Corbin supported
the syndicates plan arguing against the immediate
government sale of gold
Continued...
Black Friday
Scandal
Facts for kids
Black Friday Scandal Facts for kids
Interesting history and the Black Friday Scandal Facts for kids are
continued below.
Black Friday
Scandal
Facts for kids
Black Friday Scandal
Fact 11: Abel Corbin then
convinced President Grant to appoint General Daniel
Butterfield as assistant Treasurer of the United States.
Black Friday Scandal
Fact 12: General Daniel
Butterfield had agreed to tip the syndicate off when the
government intended to sell gold.
Black Friday Scandal
Fact 13: August 1869: Fisk and
Gould began buying massive amounts of gold causing gold
prices to rise and stocks to drop.
Black Friday Scandal
Fact 14: September 20, 1869:
Gould and Fisk then started hoarding gold forcing gold
prices even higher and Gould and Fisk then started
selling their gold at a huge profit.
Black Friday Scandal
Fact 15: September 24, 1869:
The value of gold had reached a figure that was 30%
higher than when President Grant had begun his
presidency.
Black Friday Scandal
Fact 16: President Grant
realized what was happening, that he had received bad
advice from his brother-in-law and ordered the
government to sell $4 million in gold.
Black Friday Scandal
Fact 17: The influx of
government gold hit the market and the gold premium
plunged within minutes.
Black Friday Scandal
Fact 18: Investors rushed to
sell their investments and shares, and many of them,
including Abel Corbin, were ruined.
Black Friday Scandal
Fact 19: James Fisk and Jay
Gould escaped significant financial harm
Black Friday Scandal
Fact 20: There was a
subsequent investigation by Congress chaired by James A.
Garfield. Virginia Corbin and First Lady Julia Grant
were not called to testify. General Daniel Butterfield
was removed from his post. , Although President Ulysses
Grant was never a target of investigation but his
reputation was badly tarnished
Black Friday
Scandal
Facts for kids
Black Friday Scandal - President Ulysses Grant Video
The article on the Black Friday Scandal provides an overview of one of the Important issues of his presidential term in office. The following
Ulysses Grant video will
give you additional important facts and dates about the political events experienced by the 18th American President whose presidency spanned from March 4, 1869 to March 4, 1877.
Black Friday Scandal
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Interesting Facts about Black Friday Scandal for kids and schools
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Definition of the Black Friday Scandal in US history
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Facts about the Black Friday Scandal
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Ulysses Grant Presidency from March 4, 1869 to March 4, 1877
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Fast, fun, facts about the Black Friday Scandal of 1869
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Foreign & Domestic
policies of President Ulysses Grant
● Ulysses Grant Presidency and
the 1869 Black Friday Scandal for schools,
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