With the stock market last week undergoing its worst week since 2008, it's instructive to take the long view, the very long view. Here's a chart of the Dow Jones over the past 120 with historical events superimposed on the chart. 

Questions:

• What historical event required the longest recovery time for the Dow Jones Industrial Average? 
• What historical event caused the last big drop in the stock market (before last week's decline)? 
• Find 2-3 historical events on the chart and indicate what impact it had on the Dow Jones. 
• What 20-30 year periods saw the sharpest increases in the Dow Jones? Can you tell by looking at the historical events, what led to those being such positive years for the Dow?
• Can you come up with an alternative title for the chart? 

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Thanks to NGPF super intern Ansh for compiling the last 20+ Charts of the Week in this document. 

About the Author

Tim Ranzetta

Tim's saving habits started at seven when a neighbor with a broken hip gave him a dog walking job. Her recovery, which took almost a year, resulted in Tim getting to know the bank tellers quite well (and accumulating a savings account balance of over $300!). His recent entrepreneurial adventures have included driving a shredding truck, analyzing executive compensation packages for Fortune 500 companies and helping families make better college financing decisions. After volunteering in 2010 to create and teach a personal finance program at Eastside College Prep in East Palo Alto, Tim saw firsthand the impact of an engaging and activity-based curriculum, which inspired him to start a new non-profit, Next Gen Personal Finance.

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