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Selective Service Act passed
Congress passed this six weeks after entering WWI to give the U.S. president power to draft soldiers. It required all men in the US between ages 21 and 30 to register for military service. Woodrow Wilson wanted this because the small U.S. military (100,000) was not enough or well trained to fight in Europe. 10 million men signed up in response to the act within a few months, and at the end of WWI, 24 million had registered under the act. 2.8 million of the 4.8 million soldiers were drafted. -
18th Amendment
Many religious groups believed that alcohol was a threat to the nation; hence, prohibition movements were widely spread through the US. Congress ratified the 18th Amendment in 1919, and it took action in 1920, prohibiting the manufacture, transportation, and sale of intoxicating liquors. It was very difficult to enforce. Lots of illegal activity arose; speakeasies and bootleggers became more popular. Eventually in 1933, Congress ratified the 21st Amendment, while repealed the 18th Amendment. -
Harlem Renaissance
Began because of the Great Migration of blacks to the north during World War I for jobs, the Harlem Renaissance was a substantial growth in African American culture in the north. This growth led to the creation of different black inspired forms of art, writing, and nightlife, such as the creation of the Cotton Club, careers for actors like Paul Robeson, music as jazz, and visual artists such as Aaron Douglas. The Harlem Renaissance only came to an end because of the stock market crash of 1929. -
19th Amendment
After almost a century of protest, the 19th Amendment was ratified. The Seneca Falls Convention of 1848 launched the idea of women's right, and the demand for the right to vote had been on the top of the list ever since. While the northern and western states immediately acted upon the ratification, the southern states opposed it. Tennessee representative Harry Burn approved it after his mother convinced him. Congress ratified the amendment granting American women suffrage, or the right to vote. -
Emergency Quota Act
Referred to as the 1921 Quota Act, this legislation utilized immigration statistics to determine a maximum number of immigrants allowed to enter the United States from each nation or region. The numbers were skewed to favor immigration from western European nations while severely curbing immigration from areas perceived to be undesirable. -
Sacco and Vanzetti Trial
Sacco and Vanzetti were Italian men who supposedly murdered two men and stole over $15,000. They had no previous criminal record and another criminal confessed, but they were still convicted and sentenced to die. Many anti-radicals saw this as unlawfully sensational. Lots of protests were held around the world, especially in NYC and Philadelphia in the leading days the the execution. Bombs were even set off. There protests did not change the verdict; the men were electrocuted on August 23. -
Publication of "The Great Gatsby"
The now well-known classic "The Great Gatsby" F. Scott Fitzgerald was published in 1925. It had mediocre sales and mixed reviews, and the author died 15 yrs later thinking that his book was a failure. The sales began five years later when the US military saved the book & ordered copies for the troops to promote romanticism. Now almost 500,000 are sold each year. This fictional book depicts American life of the 1920s by including things like prohibition and materialism of the "Roaring Twenties." -
John Scopes Trial
This trial was the 1925 prosecution of science teacher John Scopes for teaching evolution in a public school, which the Butler Act had made illegal. The trial appeared with William Jennings Bryan and Clarence Darrow, as opposing attorneys. The trial was viewed as an opportunity to challenge the constitutionality of the bill, to publicly advocate for the legitimacy of Darwin’s theory of evolution, and to enhance the profile of the ACLU. -
Flight of Charles Lindbergh
Twenty-five year old Charles A. Lindbergh was the first person in history to fly across the Atlantic Ocean via airplane. He had learned to fly in the Army, and when he learned of the $25,000 prize of the first person to do this, he jumped on the opportunity. His airplane, the Spirit of St. Louis, made it from New York to Paris, France. He was greeted with 100,000 people. The Times called this a "movement of humanity." -
The Jazz Singer
American musical The Jazz Singer was the first movie with dialogue. It ended the silent-film era in the United States. The movie was based off a 1925 play. It includes actors Al Jolson, Mary McAvoy, and Warner Oland. It is about a boy who has to choose between singing at the dress rehearsal of his new Broadway show or at the synagogue in his father's place. One of Jolson's lines, "You ain't heard nothin' yet," symbolizes the sound movies. -
St. Valentine's Day Massacre
Four men dressed as police officers enter gangster Bugs Moran’s headquarters on North Clark Street in Chicago, line seven of Moran’s henchmen against a wall, and shoot them to death. The St. Valentine’s Day Massacre, as it is now called, was the culmination of a gang war between arch rivals Al Capone and Bugs Moran. -
Hoover Elected
In 1917, Herbert Hoover was appointed head of Food Administration under Wilson, and under Harding & Coolidge, he was secretary of commerce. With his success, he ran as a Republican in the election of 1928 against Alfred E. Smith, the governor of NY. Hoover won, and after only seven months in office, the stock market crashed. As a republican, Hoover believed there was a limited role of government, so he did not do much during the Great Depression, giving him a bad rep as president. -
Black Tuesday
16,410,030 shared were traded by investors in Wall Street, New York in just one day. Billions of dollars were lost. In the 1920s, the US stock market rapidly expanded, until people started leaving stocks in great excess of their real value. There were signs of stock prices declining in September and early October. Companies tried stabilizing the market by buying big blocks of stock on the Friday before. Black Tuesday was the start of the Great Depression. -
Hoover Dam Construction
In the early 20th century, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation devised plans for a massive dam on the Arizona-Nevada border to tame the Colorado River and provide water and hydroelectric power for the developing Southwest. Construction within the strict timeframe proved an immense challenge. Over five years, a total of 21,000 men would work ceaselessly to produce what would be the largest dam of its time, as well as one of the largest manmade structures in the world. -
Empire State Building Built
The idea for the Empire State Building is said to have been born of a competition between Walter Chrysler of the Chrysler Corporation and John Jakob Raskob of General Motors to see who could erect the taller building.The Depression-era construction employed as many as 3,400 workers on any single day, most of whom received an excellent pay rate. -
Bonus Army March
A group of some 1,000 World War I veterans seeking cash payments for their veterans’ bonus certificates, had arrived in Washington, D.C. Most of the marchers were unemployed veterans in desperate financial straits. In June, other veteran groups spontaneously made their way to the nation’s capital, swelling the Bonus Marchers to nearly 20,000 strong. They demanded passage of the veterans’ payment bill, but loss. On July 28, President Hoover ordered the army to evict the 2000 who refused to leave. -
1st Election of FDR
Democratic nominee Franklin D. Roosevelt ran against President Herbert Hoover in the election of 1932. After Hoover did little to end the Great Depression, Roosevelt won the election. This election was a dramatic shift in the political alignment of the country. President Roosevelt set a new standard for United States Presidents after he did a lot for the country (coming up with the New Deal) in just his first 100 days. He did his best to give out relief money, create new jobs, and new programs. -
FDR's First 100 Days
Roosevelt began the momentous first 100 days of his presidency by closing all banks for several days until Congress could pass reform legislation. He also began holding open press conferences and giving regular national fireside chats in which he spoke directly to the American people to restore public confidence and prevent harmful bank runs. After passage of the Emergency Banking Relief Act, three out of every four banks were open within a week. Key programs and institutions were also created. -
FDIC Passed
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation was established by the Banking Act of 1933 after the start of the Great Depression. President Roosevelt signed off the FDIC after the loss of $1.3 billion. It served as an integral part of the US financial system. It was created to protect bank depositors and ensure a level of trust in the American banking system. The early years of the FDIC was not a period of risk taking by banks. FDIC still remains in place today. -
21st Amendment
The 18th Amendment prohibited the consumption or selling of alcohol in 1919. People blamed alcohol for the wrongdoings in the United States, like men abusing their families. Prohibition after 18th amendment rapidly lost support from Americans. Crime rates rose extremely high as people smuggled and illegally made and sold alcohol and citizens saw it as stripping freedom. So, in 1933, it was repealed by the 21st Amendment. This was widely celebrated throughout the US & still is in place today. -
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
To bring order out of chaos because of the stock market crash of 1929, Congress passed three major acts creating the SEC and defining its responsibilities. The Securities Act of 1933 required public corporations to register their stock sales and distribution and make regular financial disclosures. The Securities Exchange Act of 1934 created the SEC to regulate exchanges, brokers, and over-the-counter markets, as well as to monitor the required financial disclosures. -
Hitler Elected Chancellor of Germany
He then made common cause with Hitler, persuading President Hindenburg to appoint Hitler chancellor and himself vice-chancellor. He promised the president that he would restrain Hitler’s worst tendencies and that a majority of the Cabinet would go to non-Nazis. As Hindenburg’s current chancellor could no longer gain a majority in the Reichstag, and Hitler could bring together a larger swath of the masses and a unified coalition, the president gave in and Hitler was named chancellor. -
National Labor Relations Act
Congress enacted the National Labor Relations Act ("NLRA") in 1935 to protect the rights of employees and employers, to encourage collective bargaining, and to curtail certain private sector labor and management practices, which can harm the general welfare of workers, businesses and the U.S. economy. -
Social Security Act Passed
Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Social Security Act in 1935. This was one of the programs created by the New Deal, along with the WPA and CCC to get America out of the depression. He wanted to make sure that senior citizens would not end up in poverty. It was first created to help with the unemployment, it now works more as a safety net for retirees. It remains in place today, relatively unchanged since the date it was created. Programs like this are why FDR remains highly remembered. -
Neutrality Act
After WWI, America thought it was best to go down the road of isolation. While tensions were built in Europe before WWII, the United States pledged neutral by the Neutrality Act. The first prohibited the exports to nations at war and restricted American travel on belligerent ships. The 1937 act created the "cash-and-carry basis." The 1939 act banned US ships from carrying goods to hostile ports. Congress repealed the act in November of 1941. -
Hindenburg Disaster
On May 3, 1937, the Hindenburg left Frankfurt, Germany, for a journey across the Atlantic to Lakehurst’s Navy Air Base. Stretching 804 feet from stern to bow, it carried 36 passengers and crew of 61. While attempting to moor at Lakehurst, the airship suddenly burst into flames. Rapidly falling 200 feet to the ground, the hull of the airship incinerated within seconds, killing 36 passengers and crewmembers. -
Golden Gate Bridge Completion
The project gained momentum in May 1923 when the state legislature passed the Golden Gate Bridge and Highway District Act of California for the purpose of planning, designing and financing construction. The dream of connecting San Francisco to its northern neighbors finally became a reality when construction commenced in 1933. Given the chance for steady employment amid the Great Depression, construction crews braved treacherous conditions as the roadway and towers took shape over open water. -
Nazi Germany Invades Poland
The German invasion of Poland is noted as the first use of the blitzkrieg strategy, which at first Germany extensively bombs the enemy's air capacity, railroads, communication lines, and munitions dumps, followed by a land invasion with overwhelming numbers of troops, tanks, and artillery. -
Lend-Lease Act
The Lend-Lease Act was the means for providing US military aid to other nations during WWII. It allowed for the US to support their interests in war while by actually fighting battles. The president could trander arms or defense materials that Congress had appropriated the money for. Because of this act, Great Britain, the USSR, China, etc. received weapons. Some people, though, opposed this because it brought the US closer to entering the war. -
Pearl Harbor
Japan surprise attacked Pearl Harbor (U.S. naval base in Hawaii) because they had been having foreign affair problems with the United States dealing with China and trying to get oil. A bomb landed on USS Arizona, killing 1,000 men on board. Japan destroyed 20 navy vessels, including 8 huge battleships and over 300 airplanes. More than 2,400 people died, and another 1,000 were wounded. President Franklin D. Roosevelt declared war the next day. -
D-Day
The Battle of Normandy or also known more commonly as D-Day resulted in the Allied liberation of Western Europe from Nazi Germany's control. Allied forces landed on the beaches of the fortified coast of France's Normandy region and attacked with large amphibious military assaults. The Normandy landings are considered as the beginning of the end of the war in Europe for some. -
Concentration Camps Liberated
As Allied troops moved across Europe in a series of offensives against Nazi Germany, they began to encounter tens of thousands of concentration camp prisoners. Many of these prisoners had survived forced marches into the interior of Germany from camps in occupied Poland. These prisoners were suffering from starvation and disease. -
Yalta Conference
The Yalta Conference was the second wartime meeting of British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin, and U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt. During the conference, the three leaders agreed to demand Germany’s unconditional surrender and began plans for a post-war world. Stalin also agreed to permit free elections in Eastern Europe and to enter the war against Japan, for which he was promised the return of lands lost to Japan in the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-05. -
Battle of Iwo Jima
The United States make their first strike on Japanese islands. Three U.S. Marine divisions bombarded Japan's army and navy of 23,000 men on the key island. Japan's army fought through caves, tunnels, and underground installations. The marines wiped out the Japan after a month of fighting. America did lose 5,900 men and 17,400 were wounded. Joe captured a famous photograph of the American soldiers raising the flag after their victory. -
FDR's Death
On April 12, Roosevelt suffered a massive cerebral hemorrhage; he died later that day and was succeeded in office by his vice president, Harry S. Truman, who was left in charge of a country still fighting the Second World War and in possession of a weapon of unprecedented and terrifying power. -
VE Day
Great Britain and the United States celebrate Victory in Europe Dat. Both nations put our flags and banners, rejoicing the defeat of the Nazis. Germany's goal was to jeep from being taken prisoner by Soviet forces. However, they captured 2 million prisoners near the end of war. Germany had surrendered to the Soviets after losing many men. V-E Day is celebrated on the 9th in Moscow because Stalin announced that day, "Your courage has defeated the Nazis. The war is over." -
Hiroshima & Nagasaki
The world's first atomic bomb hit Hiroshima, Japan dropped by an American B-29 bomber. It wiped out 90% of the city. 80,000 were killed immediately, but thousands more later of radiation exposure. Another 40,000 died after a second B-29 bomber dropped an atomic bomb on Nagasaki. Emperor Hirohito announced their surrender in WWI on August 15, "VJ Day." -
Nagasaki Atomic Bomb
The devastation wrought at Hiroshima was not sufficient to convince the Japanese War Council to accept the Potsdam Conference’s demand for unconditional surrender. The United States had already planned to drop their second atom bomb on August 11 in the event of such recalcitrance, but bad weather expected pushed the date up to August 9th. Nagasaki was a shipbuilding center, the very industry intended for destruction. The Emperor of Japan gave his permission for unconditional surrender. -
VJ Day
VJ Day is "Victory over Japan Day." Japan ended WWI when they surrendered to the Allies on August 14, 1945. Japan brought 6 years of hostilities to an end. It is celebrated on the 14th and 15th of August., but is sometimes celebrated on September 2 because that is when Japan's official surrender happened on the U.S.S. Missouri in Tokyo Bay. President Truman said, "This is the day we have been waiting for since Pearl Harbor. This is the day when Fascism finally dies, as we always knew it would." -
United Nations Established
The United Nations was born of perceived necessity, as a means of better arbitrating international conflict and negotiating peace than was provided for by the old League of Nations. The growing Second World War became the real impetus for the United States, Britain, and the Soviet Union to begin formulating the original U.N. Declaration, signed by 26 nations in January 1942, as a formal act of opposition to Germany, Italy, and Japan, the Axis Powers.
