November 14 in Market History

On November 14, 1972, the Dow Jones index closed above 1,000 for the first time, at 1,003.  The market stayed above 1,000 every trading day until January 26, 1973, but it then it fell sharply, to 577 by the end of 1974. It would take 10 years to close below 1,000 for the last time.

On November 14, 1986 (a Friday), the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission announced that Ivan Boesky would have to pay $100 million in fines to settle insider-trading charges against him. The settlement was just $6 million less than the entire SEC budget for 1986.  The market fell into the next Tuesday, to a "Boesky low" of Dow 1817, the floor for a 50% gain in 9 months.

On November 14, 1991, President Bush and the Senate discussed placing limits on credit card interest rates.  That idea didn't sit well with Wall Street; the Dow fell 120 points the next day.

1914 Business Birthday: The First Dodge

On November 14, 1914, John and Horace Dodge finished making their first car, known as "Old Betsy."  The Dodge brothers gave Betsy a test drive through the streets of Detroit, then Betsy was shipped to a buyer in Tennessee.  The Dodge brothers, who began their business career as bicycle manufacturers in 1897, first entered the automotive industry as auto parts manufacturers in 1901.

The Dodge boys then built engines for Ransom Olds and Henry Ford, among others.  By 1910, they were the largest parts-manufacturing firm in the U.S. In 1914, they founded Dodge Brothers Motor Car Company, and began work in a Hamtramck factory.  Dodge vehicles became known for their quality and sturdiness, and by 1919, the Dodge brothers became incredibly rich.

In early 1920, just as he was completing work on his 110-room mansion on the Grosse Pointe waterfront in Michigan, John fell ill from respiratory problems and died. Horace, who also suffered from lung problems, died from pneumonia in December of 1920.  The company was later sold to a New York bank and in 1928 Chrysler bought the Dodge factories and dealers.

The Microsoft "Monopoly" Fumbles the Internet

On this day in 1996, Microsoft announced that it would spend $400 million to develop Internet content and would continue to pump money into online businesses at the same high rate until the businesses began to turn a profit. Although the company launched a series of ambitious Internet projects, most of them failed to outperform Yahoo or America Online over the next few years.

News In the Air

1910: Lieutenant Eugene Ely, U.S. Navy, became the first man to take off in an airplane from the deck of a ship, the Birmingham at Hampton Roads. He soon landed in Norfolk (Virginia).

1969: Apollo 12 was launched—the second U.S. manned mission to the Moon.

1970: A DC-9 crashed in Kenova, West Virginia, killing the entire Marshall U. football team.

1984: The Space Shuttle Discovery and its crew rescued a second satellite in outer space.

Other Famous Firsts on November 14

1851: The Great American Novel, "Moby Dick," by Herman Melville, was published.

1896: The power plant at Niagara Falls began its operation.

1906: Teddy Roosevelt became the first U.S. President to visit a foreign country (Panama).

1908: Albert Einstein first presented his quantum theory of light.

1922: The British Broadcasting Company (BBC) began its first daily radio broadcast.

1935: The Commonwealth of the Philippines was born; Manuel Luis Quezon was president.

1960: OPEC (the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries) was formed.

Cold War Time Twins: Born November 14, 1908

Senator Joseph McCarthy, the notorious anti-Communist Senator from Wisconsin, was born on the same day as his philosophical opposite, Harrison Salisbur, in neighboring Minnesota.  The New York Times reporter and author of several books on Russia, was in Moscow in the Cold War.  

More History >>