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The Emergency Immigration Act
The Emergency Immigration Act required that no more than 3 percent of the number of persons from a nation living in the United States, as recorded in the census of 1910, could be admitted to the country in the coming year. The law allowed only about 357,000 people to immigrate to the United States during the 1922 fiscal year. This act confirmed the growing American fear that people from southern and eastern European countries didn't adapt well into American society and threatened its existence. -
Invention of the Radial Arm Saw
Unlike most types of woodworking machinery, the radial arm saw has a clear origin: it was invented by Raymond De Walt of Leola, Pennsylvania. It received a patent in 1925. It became the primary tool used for cutting long pieces of stock to length until the introduction of the power miter saw in the 1970s. -
The National Origins Act of 1924
This act set up a simple formula: The number of immigrants of a given nationality each year could not exceed 2 percent of the number of people of that nationality living in the United States in 1890. It also continued to exclude most Asian immigrants just like the Emergency Immigration Act did. The effect of eugenics, Social Darwinism, and nativist sentiment in general was that America closed its "golden door" to many of the people trying to enter. -
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Scopes Trial
This was the 1925 prosecution of science teacher John Scopes for teaching evolution in a Tennessee public school, which the Buffer Act had deemed illegal. The trial featured William Jennings Bryan and Clarence Darrow as opposing attorneys. The trial was viewed as an opportunity to challenge the constitutionality of the Buffer Act, advocate for the legitimacy of Darwinism, and enhance the profile of the ACLU. The case was later thrown-out, but the conflict between these two spheres remained. -
1928 U.S. Presidential Election
The United States presidential election of 1928 pitted Republican Herbert Hoover against Democrat Al Smith. The Republicans were identified with the booming economy of the 1920s, whereas Smith, a Roman Catholic, suffered politically from anti-Catholic prejudice, his anti-prohibitionist stance, and the legacy of corruption of Tammany Hall with which he was associated. Hoover won a landslide victory on pledges to continue the economic boom of the Coolidge years. -
Black Thursday
This is the event that kicked off the Great Depression. The years preceding Black Thursday were filled with irrational exuberance. By the fall of 1929, U.S. stock prices had reached levels that could not be justified by reasonable anticipations of future earnings. As a result, when a variety of minor events led to gradual price declines in October 1929, investors lost confidence and the stock market bubble burst. Investors raced to pull their money out of the stock market. -
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The Great Depression
The Great Depression was the worst economic downturn in the history of the industrialized world. It started after the stock market crash of October 1929, which sent Wall Street into a panic and wiped out millions of investors. Over the next couple years, consumer spending and investment dropped. This resulted in declines in industrial output and employment as failing companies laid off workers. By 1933, about 15 million Americans were unemployed and about half the nation's banks had failed. -
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The Dust Bowl
The Dust Bowl was the name given to the drought-stricken Southern Plains region of the United States, which suffered severe dust storms during a dry period in the 1930s. As high winds and choking dust swept the region from Texas to Nebraska, people and livestock were killed and crops failed across the entire region.
Many of the farmers and their families migrated to California where they had heard there were jobs. Poor farmers who moved from the Dust Bowl to California were called "Okies." -
Star Spangled Banner Adopted as the National Anthem
In 1814, Francis Scott Key wrote the lyrics to “The Star-Spangled Banner” after witnessing the overnight British bombardment of Fort McHenry in Maryland during the War of 1812. Throughout the 19th century, it was regarded as the national anthem by many, but it was officially recognized as such in 1916 when Woodrow Wilson signed an executive order. In March 1931, Congress passed an act confirming Wilson’s presidential order, and on March 3 President Hoover signed it into law. -
Roosevelt Promises a New Deal
In 1932, Franklin D. Roosevelt was the presidential candidate of the Democratic Party. In his acceptance speech, Roosevelt addressed the problems of the depression by telling the American people that, "I pledge you, I pledge myself, to a new deal for the American people." Roosevelt won the election by a landslide. Despite originally being a figure of speech, New Deal became the overarching name for the many programs which Roosevelt would enact to help end the Great Depression. -
Ratification of the Twentieth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution
Commonly known as the “Lame Duck Amendment,” the Twentieth Amendment was designed to remove the excessively long period of time a defeated president or member of Congress would continue to serve after his or her failed bid for reelection. It moved the beginning and ending of the terms of the president and vice president from March 4 to January 20, and of members of Congress from March 4 to January 3. -
Social Security Act Passed
This act established a pension system for retirees and created unemployment insurance for workers who lost their jobs. Additionally, the law created insurance for victims of work-related accidents and gave aid to poverty-stricken mothers and children, the blind, and the disabled. It was funded by a payroll tax on employers and workers. It did have some flaws at first, like that it didn't apply to domestic workers. Nevertheless, it proved to be the most significant of the New Deal programs. -
Fair Labor Standards Act is Signed
The Fair Labor Standards Act is a federal law which established a minimum wage, initially 25 cents per hour, and a maximum workweek of 44 hours. It also outlawed child labor. The minimum wage remains one of the New Deal's most controversial legacies. In the coming years, the minimum wage would be gradually raised. -
Pearl Harbor Attack
As Japanese diplomats wrangled in the U.S. capital, Japan's navy sailed for Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, the site of the U.S. Navy's main Pacific base. The forces sent included 6 aircraft carriers, 360 airplanes, and a number of battleships, cruisers, and submarines. Their mission was to eradicate the American naval and air presence in the Pacific with a surprise attack. Such a blow would prevent Americans from mounting a strong resistance to Japanese expansion.The attack killed about 2,500 people.
