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Radio
The radio first came to be in 1920. It immediatly became immensely popular. It was the first time people could be connected to the world and updated instantly on any current events. By 1922 there were over 600 radio stations. And between 1923-1930 over 60 percent of the American population owned a radio. -
Flappers
The term flapper is referring to the "new breed' of women. They listened to jazz, wore short skirts, bobbed their skirts, smoked cigarettes, went out without a man, drove automobiles, had a casual view on sex, and did whatever they wanted. This goes along with the war ending and people feeling liberated. Flappers were especially a good example of this. -
The Traffic Light
It was invented by Police officer William Potts. With the rise in popularity of the automobile it was beginning to become a problem. So the first traffic light was installed on the corner of Woodward and Michigan Avenues in Detroit. This in years to come became a normal thing. Morgans patent was soon bought by GE which helped make it become a generic thing all over the country. -
Prohibition
Prohibition is the prohibiting of selling, making, owning or having anything to do with alcohol. This was brought about by women, mostly the christian womens temperance union. The women used the defense that alcohol made their "man" dangerous. This made alcohol all the more popular with the creation of "speakeasies" and bathtub gin. Alcohol seemed more accessible now than ever. Even police were "looking the other way" when it came to booze. Prohibition made the consumption of alcohol worse -
Teapot Dome Scandal
In Teapot Dome in Wyoming there is a tract of land reserved by previous presidents. Underground there is oil controlled by the navy. It is to be used only during an emergency. Albert B. Fall became Warren Harding's Secretary of The Interior in 1921. Harding convinced Secretary of The Navy Edwin Denby to give him control of the oil fields. Harding than leased the Teapot Dome to various companies. In turn he got "gifts" that totalled to about $400,00. In 1924 it was revealed to the public. -
Bulldozer
Engineer Benjamin Holt built a crawling tractor, which he called “caterpillar” in 1885. In 1923 scraping blades were attached and LaPlant-Choate Manufacturing Company produced the first bulldozer in 1923. This things in the construction buisness easier and more convenient for years to come. -
Flagpole Sitting
Flagpole sitting was created by a professional stuntman Alvin "Shipwreck" Kelly. On his first attempt he sat atop a flagpole for 13 hours and 13 minutes. From there it became a fad among most people. It was particularly popular in Baltimore for some reason. -
Immigration Act
The Immigration Act or Johnson-Reed Act was a law that limited the number of immigrants who could be in the United States from any country to 2 percent. It followed the idea that we were so paranoid after the war and thought that with immigrants in the country it was too risky. This leads to even more paranoia later on in the decade and put a bad name on our acceptance and "land of the free". -
KKK
The Ku Klux Klan or KKK has a record of using terrorism, violence, and lynching to murder and oppress African Americans, Jews and other minorities. They made a resurgance in the 1920's with more than 4 million members. Many members were in the legislature and congress. They are still around now but aren't as prominent as in the 20's. -
The Jazz Singer
The Jazz Singer starring Al Jolson is about a man going against his traditional jewish family by singing jazz. After running away and making a name for himself years later he still is dealing with the struggle between his love for jazz and his family. What makes this movie so historical is the fact that it was the first "talkie" which meant the end of the silent film era. And so the time of talkies begins... -
Lucky Lindy
Charles Lindbergh, and air-mail pilot was most famous for winning the Orteig Prize. A prize won for flying from Roosevelt Field located in Garden City on New York's Long Island to Le Bourget Field in Paris, France, in the single-seat, single-engine monoplane Spirit of St. Louis. This brought to the attention of the people the first possibility of commercial flying. It's convenient and fast. -
The Bread Slicer
The bread slicer was invented by Otto Rohwedder. He designed a machine that not only sliced bread but wrapped it as well. On July 27 in 1928 history was made when the sliced bread was released commercially. The brand name was Sliced Kleen Maid Bread. Now for many years we have been enjoying conveniently sliced bread and it's all because of this man. -
Frozen Food
Clarence Birdseye invented frozen food. in 1924 he started a packing company called Birdseye Seafoods, Inc. He introduced a system that dressed meat and vegetables and preserved them in waxed-cardboard cartons, after being exposed to high pressure. This of course is the start of what we all do now. -
St. Valentine's Day Massacre
On this day in Chicago, Illinois the south side italian gang led by Al Capone shot and killed seven members of the north side irish gang led by Bugs Moran. The men had been lured in by Al Capone's men because two of them were dressed as police officers. This was so huge because it was the biggest massacre any had ever seen. It was said to believe that Moran had stolen booze from Capone. This was just one more reason why prohibition wasn't working out. -
The Public Enemy
The Public Enemy is a movie starring James Cagney the story of a cheap thugs rise to that of a powerful prohibition gangster. This movie is so influential because it used its powerful imagery and beautiful cinematography to convey it meaning rather than outright showing you everything. Not to mention it was around the time of prohibition. To actual show this crime being committed was forbidden. James Cagneys performance will forever be remembered as his greatest role ever.
