New York Stock Exchange Founded
Twenty-four stockbrokers signed the Buttonwood Agreement, founding what became the NYSE
May 17, 1792
A Agreement Under a Buttonwood Tree
On May 17, 1792, twenty-four stockbrokers and merchants signed the Buttonwood Agreement under a buttonwood tree on Wall Street in New York City. This document established rules for trading securities among themselves, laying the groundwork for what would become the New York Stock Exchange. At the time, the young United States government had just issued bonds to pay off Revolutionary War debts, creating a need for an organized marketplace. The agreement set commission rates and gave members preferential treatment when trading with each other.
From Street Corner to Global Exchange
The informal arrangement grew steadily over the following decades. In 1817, the organization adopted a formal constitution and moved indoors, renaming itself the New York Stock and Exchange Board. Over the nineteenth century it became the dominant marketplace for American corporate stocks and government bonds. The exchange played a central role in financing the railroads that connected the country and the industrial expansion that followed the Civil War. By the early twentieth century, Wall Street and the NYSE had become symbols of American economic power worldwide.
The World's Financial Heartbeat
Today the NYSE is the largest stock exchange in the world by market capitalization, listing thousands of companies from across the globe. Its opening bell each morning sets the tone for financial markets everywhere. Over more than two centuries, it has survived wars, depressions, and technological upheaval. Electronic trading has replaced most floor trading, but the exchange remains a powerful symbol. The Great Depression crash tested the NYSE severely, leading to the regulations that protect investors today.