Follow the links from mutualfunds.about.com/cs/history/a/marketcrash.htm

Is most of your wealth in the market?  Why?  The 1987 crash didn't even make it in the top 10, it was only a measly 22% crash

Here's the 10 worst stock mkt crashes:

10th Worst Stock Market Crash:

Date Started: 1/15/2000
Date Ended: 10/9/2002

Total Days: 999
Starting DJIA: 11,792.98
Ending DJIA: 7,286.27
Total Loss: -37.8%

9th Worst Stock Market Crash:

Date Started: 11/21/1916
Date Ended: 12/19/1917

Total Days: 393
Starting DJIA: 110.15
Ending DJIA: 65.95
Total Loss: -40.1%

8th Worst Stock Market Crash:

Date Started: 9/12/1939
Date Ended: 4/28/1942

Total Days: 959
Starting DJIA: 155.92
Ending DJIA: 92.92
Total Loss: -40.4%


7th Worst Stock Market Crash:

Date Started: 1/11/1973
Date Ended: 12/06/1974

Total Days: 694
Starting DJIA: 1051.70
Ending DJIA: 577.60
Total Loss: -45.1%

6th Worst Stock Market Crash:

Date Started: 6/17/1901
Date Ended: 11/9/1903

Total Days: 875
Starting DJIA: 57.33
Ending DJIA: 30.88
Total Loss: -46.1%

The 5th worst stock market crash:

Date Started: 11/3/1919
Date Ended: 8/24/1921

Total Days: 660
Starting DJIA: 119.62
Ending DJIA: 63.9
Total Loss: -46.6%


4th Worst Stock Market Crash :

Date Started: 9/3/1929
Date Ended: 11/13/1929

Total Days: 71
Starting DJIA: 381.17
Ending DJIA: 198.69
Total Loss: -47.9%

3rd Worst Stock Market Crash:

Date Started: 1/19/1906
Date Ended: 11/15/1907

Total Days: 665
Starting DJIA: 75.45
Ending DJIA: 38.83
Total Loss: -48.5%

2nd Worst Stock Market Crash:

Date Started: 3/10/1937
Date Ended: 3/31/1938

Total Days: 386
Starting DJIA: 194.40
Ending DJIA: 98.95
Total Loss: -49.1%

Worst Stock Market Crash Ever:

Date Started: 4/17/1930
Date Ended: 7/8/1932

Total Days: 813
Starting DJIA: 294.07
Ending DJIA: 41.22
Total Loss: -86.0%

Most of my 'wealth' is locked up in the gun safe.

The market could crash and it would not directly affect me much at all.


editied to add:  It's 'lest' not 'less.'

Quoted: Most of my 'wealth' is locked up in the gun safe. The market could crash and it would not directly affect me much at all. editied to add:  It's 'lest' not 'less.'

thx

Yep. And after all that I still have averaged more than 10% annually.

Stock market investments should be long term investments.

Might pay to stay out of the market until a crash happens then put a boatload of money into it but get out after making a killing and wait for the next crash

I won't even think about investing until the DOW drops below 7k.

I wouldn't really consider those crashes!  They are Bear Markets.  Look at the time periods, most are between one and three years.  If you invest regularly, you will buy on the way down and on the way up, and when it is over you will still make out in the end.  Don't think of them as doom and gloom, think of them as discounted.

I am willing to bet if you look at then next 2 or 3 years following any of those Bear Markets the charts would tell you a great story of gains!  

It is a cycle, a good cycle if you are long term.  I only lost about 20% or so durring the 2000-2002 period but since late 2003 to now my total investments have more than doubled.... they are getting close to trippling.  Why?  Because I didn't panic, I played it cool, and I was constantly buying durring the last Bear Market.




Rember to look at the BIG picture!

Here is a chart from 1970!




Here is one from 1930... notice that the farther back you go the less signifigant the bear markets are.





Here is one from 1920

Quoted: I wouldn't really consider those crashes!  They are Bear Markets.  Look at the time periods, most are between one and three years.  If you invest regularly, you will buy on the way down and on the way up, and when it is over you will still make out in the end.  Don't think of them as doom and gloom, think of them as discounted. I am willing to bet if you look at then next 2 or 3 years following any of those Bear Markets the charts would tell you a great story of gains!   It is a cycle, a good cycle if you are long term.  I only lost about 20% or so durring the 2000-2002 period but since late 2003 to now my total investments have more than doubled.... they are getting close to trippling.  Why?  Because I didn't panic, I played it cool, and I was constantly buying durring the last Bear Market. bigcharts.marketwatch.com/charts/big.chart?symb=djia&compidx=aaaaa%3A0&ma=0&maval=9&uf=0&lf=1&lf2=0&lf3=0&type=2&size=2&state=8&sid=1643&style=320&time=12&freq=2&nosettings=1&rand=2940&mocktick=1&rand=867 Rember to look at the BIG picture! Here is a chart from 1970! bigcharts.marketwatch.com/charts/big.chart?symb=djia&compidx=aaaaa%3A0&ma=0&maval=9&uf=0&lf=1&lf2=0&lf3=0&type=2&size=2&state=8&sid=1643&style=320&time=20&freq=2&nosettings=1&rand=471&mocktick=1&rand=7157 Here is one from 1930... notice that the farther back you go the less signifigant the bear markets are. chart.finance.yahoo.com/c/my/_/_dji ichart.finance.yahoo.com/z?s=%5EIXIC&t=my&q=&l=&z=&p=m50,m200&a=v Here is one from 1920 www.gold-eagle.com/editorials_04/images/bloom073004f.gif

X-Ring! If you're a short-term trader then said crashes will be devastating to you. If you're in it for the long haul, things aren't as bad as they seem.

The important thing to remember when looking at those charts is that they do not show the effects of dividends, or inflation.

The simple act of re-investing dividends makes those charts look a lot less volatile.

The charts from the 30s look really scarey, but remember, they don't show the effects of deflation.  Stock prices were crashing, but so was the price of everything else.  In the 73/74 bear market, stock prices dropped while other prices soared.

Philip L. Carret had the best advice.  Always keep a place in your portfolio for income producing securities, and use margin sparingly, or not at all.

Crashes and bear markets are no fun, but they do indeed provide opportunities to pick up quality stocks at bargain prices.