Question

What was the defining moment that started the Panic of 1893?

Answer 1

It was the collapse of the railroad that lead to bank failures

Answer 2

The closing of the reading railroad was the defining moment that started the Panic of 1893.

The Panic of 1893 constituted a serious economic depression in the United States that began in that year. The Panic OF 1893 was marked by the collapse of railroad overbuilding and fragile railroad financing which set off a series of bank failures.