Encyclopedia of American Recessions and Depressions Available to Purchase

This encyclopedia, available in two-volumes in print, but reviewed here in its e-book version, looks at “the fourteen largest and most important economic downturns in the history of the United States” from the 1780s through 2009; it provides “accurate, detailed, jargon-free, and current information on” these downturns (pp. xv-xvi). Essays and information in the brief items were written by nineteen contributors.

A lengthy introduction discusses each of the fourteen economic downturns giving the reader a good overview of the subject. These economic downturns are: The Critical Period, 1783-1789; The Embargo Era, 1807-1809; Panic of 1819; Panic of 1837; Panic of...