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Before Black Friday was the shopping extravaganza it is today, it was a disruptive and chaotic day in Philadelphia.
- Though Black Friday became one of the biggest and busiest shopping days of the year, it hasn't always been that way.
- Before it exploded into the national, post-Thanksgiving event we know today, it was reportedly a quirky tradition unique to Philadelphians.
- And now, the holiday is experiencing more changes.
- Here's the evolution of Black Friday, from its 19th-century namesake to the dying shopping phenomenon it is today.
Black Friday has long been associated with turkey dinner and bargain-priced holiday shopping.
It's turned into one of the most profitable days for retailers, who raked in $8 billion from Black Friday and Thanksgiving sales in 2017.
But it wasn't always that way.