The period from 1966 to 1982 has been known as the Dark Ages of the Dow (since the Great Depression of 1929) as the Dow hit 990, just a whisker shy of 1,000 in January 1966. Thereafter, it entered the Dark Age, traded within a range of 600 to 990 over the next 17 years.

It then reached 990 again in December 1982 before finally breaking 1,000 in 1983 and heading higher. This took place despite high unemployment in the United States at over 10 per cent in 1983, but the Dow Jones never revisited 1,000 and went on to enjoy one of the best years. In fact, 1983 presaged one of the longest bull markets of 15 years until the global financial crisis of 2008.