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Stock Market Participation in the 1950s-60s - The Tontine Coffee-House

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In the aftermath of the stock market crash of 1929, the Great Depression, and the Second World War, the stock market looked moribund in America. Share prices were still a long way from returning to their peak levels from just before the crash. Brokerage firms were also having trouble engaging with new customers. Trading volumes, and therefore broker commissions, were stagnant. Amidst these disappointing circumstances, the New York Stock Exchange, its brokerage firm members, and mutual fund managers looked for a change. They tried to bring about a renaissance in the 1950s by introducing more Americans to the stock market.            In 1949, just 4.2% of the U.S. population owned shares. This was not because financial products were achieving little penetration in the mass market. At that same time, 82% of American families had a life insurance policy, for comparison. Also, 21% held an annuity or pension and 42% owned a U.S. government savings bond. Three years later, when the New York S

In the aftermath of the stock market crash of 1929, the Great Depression, and the Second World War, the stock market looked moribund in America. Share prices were still a long way from returning to their peak levels from just before the crash. Brokerage firms were also having trouble engaging with new customers. Trading volumes, and therefore broker commissions, were stagnant. Amidst these disappointing circumstances, the New York Stock Exchange, its brokerage firm members, and mutual fund managers looked for a change. They tried to bring about a renaissance in the 1950s by introducing more…

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