The History of Wall Street
Early years Nineteenth Century
Time
Twentieth Century Regulation Twenty-first Century
Early years
• In the 1640s, basic picket and plank fences denoted plots and residences in the colony.[13] Later, on behalf of the Dutch West India Company, Peter Stuyvesant, using both African slaves[14] and white colonists, collaborated with the city government in the construction of a more substantial fortification, a strengthened 12-foot (4 m) wall. In these early days, local merchants and traders would gather at disparate spots to buy and sell shares and bonds, and over time divided themselves into two classes— auctioneers and dealers.[16] The rampart was removed in 1699. • In the late 18th century, there was a buttonwood tree at the foot of Wall Street under which traders and speculators would gather to trade securities. In 1792, traders formalized their association with the Buttonwood Agreement which was the origin of the New York Stock Exchange • In 1789, Wall Street was the scene of the United States' first presidential inauguration when George Washington took deral Hall on April 30, 1789. This was also the location of the passing of the Bill Of Rights.
