- December 23, 2021
- Posted by: Stratford Team
- Category: Economy
By one measure of the U.S. economy, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the past 100 years look like one long joyride to prosperity.
Market crashes, recessions and depressions, wars, pandemics, and other economic shocks all appear as mere bumps in the road. On average, the Dow climbed 9% a year.
The truth on the ground was more complex. Millions suffered during economic downturns, and a half-million died in overseas conflicts. America faced down fascism, communism, and terrorism even as fractures along political, class, race, and gender lines at times turned our streets, and seats of power, into battlegrounds.
And yet, the economy and the market churned on.
If there’s one lesson we’ve learned from delving into Barron’s archives in our centennial year, it is this: Don’t underestimate the resilience of the U.S. economy and stock market. We saw that theme time and again as we published a series of retrospective pieces during 2021—and the…
