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  • 1919 History, Facts and Trivia

    1919 History, Facts and Trivia

    1919 History, Facts and Trivia

    Top Ten Baby Names of 1919

    Mary, Helen, Dorothy, Margaret, Ruth, John, William, James, Robert, Charles

    US Life Expectancy

    (1919) Males: 53.5 years, Females: 56.0 years

    Firsts, Inventions, and Wonders

    Copacetic is a word meaning ‘completely satisfactory.’ This mysterious word first appeared in a 1919 Lincoln biography by J. Alfred Sharp… “Now there’s the kind of a man! Stout as a buffalo an’ as to looks, I’d call him, as ye might say, real copasetic.” Its unknown origin provokes endless etymological speculation

    Optimist International was founded in Louisville, Kentucky

    The American Legion was formed on March 15, 1919

    Enterprise, Alabama, erected an elaborate monument in the middle of town to honor the boll weevil for its profound influence on the area’s agriculture and economy. This is probably the world’s first monument built to keep an agricultural pest.

    The Dutch airline KLM was formed. It is the oldest airline flying under its original name.

    Radio Corporation of America (RCA) was founded.

    Japanese Chemist Akira Ogata developed crystal Meth.

    Bentley Motors Limited was founded.

    American Meteorological Society was founded in Boston.

    Grand Canyon National Park: An act of the United States Congress established most of the Grand Canyon as a United States National Park.

    Harold Hamgravy, Popeye’s Olive Oil’s longtime boyfriend, debuted in Thimble Theatre Comics.

    Pepperoni is a variety of salami created in the US, and the word was first used to describe the sausage in 1919.

    On January 16, The Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, authorizing Prohibition, was ratified.

    The Most Popular Singers and Artists of 1919 include

    Norah Bayes, Al Bernard, Henry Burr, Albert Campbell, Conway’s Band, Arthur Fields, Earl Fuller’s Novelty Orchestra, Marion Harris, Charles Harrison, Vivian Holt & Lillian Rosedale, Al Jolson, Olive Kline, John McCormack, Billy Murray, The Peerless Quartet, Prince’s Orchestra, The Shannon Four, Joseph C. Smith’s Orchestra, John Steel, The Sterling Trio, Wilber Sweatman’s Original Jazz Band, Van & Schenck, The Victor Military Band, Bert Williams, Yerkes Jazarimba Orchestra

    The Scandals

    A 480-inch tall “skyscraper,” which defrauded investors thought was to be 480 feet tall (actually 480 inches, about four stories), was built in Wichita Falls, Texas, in 1919, and it still stands.

    The Black Sox Scandal, in which eight members of the Chicago White Sox were accused of intentionally losing the 1919 World Series against the Cincinnati Reds in exchange for money from gangsters. The scandal led to the appointment of the first Commissioner of Baseball.

    Pop Culture Facts & History

    The Pennsylvania Hotel has had its telephone number longer than anyone else in the United States. They were given the number Pennsylvania 6-5000 in 1919. When area codes were added, and exchange names eliminated, the number became (212) 736-5000.

    Indians Pitcher Ray Caldwell was struck by lightning on the mound and subsequently won the game against the Philadelphia Athletics on August 24, 1919.

    Racehorse Man o’ War won 20 races in a row. He lost his last race in 1919 to a horse named Upset.

    The US Congress approved the 19th Amendment to the United States Constitution, which guaranteed the right to vote for women, and sent it to the individual states for ratification.

    The Green Bay Packers got their name in 1919 after the Indian Packing Company gave the team $500 to buy equipment.

    The longest Tour de France was held in 1919 and was 3,455 miles.

    The Dodge Brothers, John and Horace, sued Henry Ford in 1919 because a company should act in the interests of its shareholders and not for the good of society, its customers, or its employees. They owned 10% of Ford stock, and the Michigan Supreme Court agreed.

    Pachelbel’s Canon was written in the 1690s but forgotten. It survived in only two manuscripts, was first published in 1919, and first recorded in 1940.

    Oregon became the first US state to tax gasoline… 1 cent per gallon.

    The name ‘Aspirin’ was originally a trademark belonging to the German pharmaceutical company, Bayer. Still, after Germany’s loss in WWI, the company was forced to hand over the trademark as a part of the Treaty of Versailles in 1919. They lost the trademarked name ‘Heroin’ too.

    When the Treaty of Versailles was signed on June 26, 1919, a French General, Marshal Ferdinand Jean Marie Foch, declared, “This is not peace; this is an armistice for 20 years”. WWII started 20 years and 64 days later.

    It was confirmed in 1919 that ‘The sun never sets on the British Empire.’

    In 1919, Michael Keogh stopped an angry mob of men from killing two right-wing political agents they were beating up. In 1930, at a Nuremberg rally, Keogh recognized one of the agents he had saved. It was Adolf Hitler.

    Eisenhower and 80 US Army vehicles attempted to drive across the country. After the experience, Eisenhower built the Interstate Highway System when he became President. #Nebraska #6milesperhour

    Edith Bolling Wilson, the second wife of President Woodrow Wilson, is often considered the first unofficial female President. She functionally ran the Executive branch of the government for the rest of her husband’s term after he suffered a stroke in 1919.

    Nerd News

    Einstein used 1919’s total solar eclipse to prove that Newton’s theory of space was wrong and that gravity can bend spacetime, causing light to take a different path.

    Gravity assists, or “Gravitational Slingshots,” which can be used to propel a spacecraft for interplanetary travel, were first theorized in 1919.

    A Social Experiment

    Charles Schwab met a bunch of black American soldiers on a boat’s commissary in 1919 and offered to lend each a dollar as an experiment. He gave them all his address if they wanted to pay him back. 138 of 154 men did, almost 90%.

    The Tragedies

    A large molasses storage tank (over 2,000,000 gallons) burst in Boston in 1919, creating a 35 MPH flood of molasses that killed 21 people and injured 150; it became known as the ‘Great Molasses Flood.’

    On July 21, 1919, the Goodyear Blimp crashed through the Illinois Trust & Savings Building skylight in Chicago, killing 13 people.

    The Influenza Pandemic of 1918-1919 is known as the most devastating epidemic in recorded world history, and it killed more people in 1 year than during the four years of the Black Plague. It was most deadly for people aged 20-40, and many died within hours of contracting the virus.

    Nobel Prize Winners

    Physics – Johannes Stark
    Chemistry – not awarded
    Physiology or Medicine – Jules Bordet
    Literature – Carl Friedrich Georg Spitteler
    Peace – Woodrow Wilson

    Popular and Best-selling Books From 1919

    Fiction Bestsellers

    1. The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse by V. Blasco Ibanez
    2. The Arrow of Gold by Joseph Conrad
    3. The Desert of Wheat by Zane Grey
    4. Dangerous Days by Mary Roberts Rinehart
    5. The Sky Pilot in No Man’s Land by Ralph Connor
    6. The Re-Creation of Brian Kent by Harold Bell Wright
    7. Dawn by Gene Stratton Porter
    8. The Tin Soldier by Temple Bailey
    9. Christopher and Columbus by “Elizabeth”
    10. In Secret by Robert W. Chambers

    Nonfiction Bestsellers

    1. The Education of Henry Adams by Henry Adams
    2. The Years Between by Rudyard Kipling
    3. Belgium by Brand Whitlock
    4. The Seven Purposes by Margaret Cameron
    5. In Flanders Fields by John McCrae
    6. Bolshevism by John Spargo

    Other Books of Note

    Winesburg, Ohio by Sherwood Anderson
    Ten Days that Shook the World by John Reed
    The Economic Consequences of the Peace by John Maynard Keynes
    Commentary on Romans by Karl Barth
    The Waning of the Middle Ages by
    Outline of History by Johan HuizingaH.G. Wells
    Rousseau and Romanticism by Irving Babbitt

    Sports

    World Series Champions: Cincinnati Reds
    Stanley Cup Champs: Montreal Canadiens (NHL) vs. Seattle Metropolitans (PCHA), but canceled due to flu epidemic, no champions
    U.S. Open Golf: Walter Hagan
    U.S. Tennis (Men/Ladies): Bill Johnston/Hazel Hotchkiss Wightman
    Wimbledon (Men/Women): Bill Tilden/Suzanne Lenglen
    NCAA Football Champions: Harvard, Texas A&M, and Notre Dame
    Kentucky Derby Winner: Sir Barton (Triple Crown Winner: Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes and Belmont Stakes)
    Boston Marathon Winner: Carl Linder Time: 2:29:13

    More 1919 Facts & History Resources:

    Most Popular Baby Names (BabyCenter.com)
    Popular and Notable Books (popculture.us) 
    Broadway Shows that Opened in 1919
    1919 Calendar, courtesy of Time and Date.com 
    Fact Monster
    1919 in Movies (according to IMDB) 
    Wikipedia 1919

  • 1918 History, Fun Facts and Trivia

    1918 History, Fun Facts and Trivia

    1918 History, Facts and Trivia

    1918 History Rundown:

    • January 8 – President Wilson’s Fourteen Points Speech: U.S. President Woodrow Wilson outlined his vision for post-war peace, presenting the Fourteen Points to Congress as a basis for ending World War I.
    • March 3 – Treaty of Brest-Litovsk Signed: Soviet Russia and the Central Powers signed this treaty, marking Russia’s exit from World War I and ceding significant territories to Germany.
    • March 21 – German Spring Offensive Launched: Germany initiated a series of attacks along the Western Front to defeat the Allies before American forces could fully arrive.
    • April 21 – Death of the Red Baron: Manfred von Richthofen, the famed German fighter pilot known as the Red Baron, was shot down and killed over France.
    • May 16 – U.S. House Passes Women’s Suffrage Amendment: The House of Representatives approved the 19th Amendment, granting women the right to vote; it would be ratified in 1920.
    • June 4 – Battle of Belleau Wood Begins: U.S. Marines engaged German forces in France, marking a significant American contribution to the war and bolstering Allied morale.
    • July 17 – Execution of the Romanov Family: Tsar Nicholas II and his family were executed by the Bolsheviks in Yekaterinburg, effectively ending the Russian monarchy.
    • July 18 – Second Battle of the Marne: Allied forces launched a successful counteroffensive against Germany, marking a turning point on the Western Front.
    • August 8 – Battle of Amiens Commences: Allied forces began an offensive that led to a series of victories, contributing to the eventual end of World War I.
    • September 26 – Meuse-Argonne Offensive Starts: The largest operation of the American Expeditionary Forces aimed to breach German defenses, leading to significant Allied advances.
    • October 12 – Cloquet Fire in Minnesota: A massive forest fire in Cloquet, Minnesota, resulted in the deaths of approximately 453 people and extensive property damage.
    • October 30 – Ottoman Empire Signs Armistice of Mudros: The Ottoman Empire agreed to cease hostilities, effectively exiting World War I.
    • November 3 – Austria-Hungary Signs Armistice: Austria-Hungary agreed to an armistice with the Allies, leading to the empire’s dissolution.
    • November 9 – Kaiser Wilhelm II Abdicates: Facing revolution at home, the German Emperor abdicated, leading to the proclamation of the Weimar Republic.
    • November 11 – Armistice Day: World War I ended with the Armistice signing between the Allies and Germany, ceasing hostilities on the Western Front.
    • November 11 – Poland Regains Independence: After 123 years of partitions, Poland re-emerged as an independent nation following the end of World War I.
    • November 28 – Estonia Declares Independence: Estonia proclaimed independence from Russia, establishing the Estonian Provisional Government.
    • December 1 – Formation of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes: The new state, later known as Yugoslavia, was established, uniting South Slavic peoples.
    • December 4 – President Wilson Sails for Paris Peace Conference: Woodrow Wilson became the first sitting U.S. president to travel to Europe, aiming to shape the post-war peace process.
    • December 14 – British General Election Held: The United Kingdom held its first general election after World War I, resulting in a coalition victory led by David Lloyd George.
    • Spanish Flu Pandemic: A deadly influenza pandemic spread globally, ultimately killing an estimated 50 million people worldwide.
    • Russian Civil War Intensifies: The conflict between the Red (Bolshevik) and White (anti-Bolshevik) armies escalated, shaping the future Soviet Union.
    • Women’s Suffrage Movement Gains Momentum: Several countries, including the United Kingdom and Canada, granted women the right to vote, marking significant progress in women’s rights.
    • Advancements in Aviation: World War I spurred significant technological advancements in aircraft design and aerial combat tactics.
    • Cultural Shifts Post-War: The end of World War I led to significant changes in art, literature, and society, setting the stage for the Roaring Twenties.

    Top Ten Baby Names of 1918

    Mary, Helen, Dorothy, Margaret, Ruth, John, William, James, Robert, Charles

    US Life Expectancy

    (1918) Males: 36.6 years, Females: 42.2 years
    *The life expectancy at birth in 1918 in the US dropped by almost 12 years because of the Spanish Flu.

    Firsts, Inventions, and Wonders

    The Timberland Shoe Company was founded.

    Irving Berlin wrote God Bless America.

    Stars & Stripes, the weekly US armed forces newspaper, restarted publication. It was also published during the Civil War.

    Opha Mae Johnson became the first woman allowed to join the US Marine Corps.

    The Most Popular Singers and Artists of 1918 include:

    Norah Bayes, Henry Burr, Enrico Caruso, Arthur Collins, Albert Campbell, The Farber Sisters, Arthur Fields, Byron G. Harlan, Marion Harris, Charles Harrison, Charles Hart, Lewis James, Al Jolson, Irving Kaufman, Olive Kline, John McCormack, Lambert Murphy, Billy Murray, The Original Dixieland Band, The Peerless Quartet, Oscar Seagle, The Shannon Four, Joseph C. Smith’s Orchestra, John Philip Sousa’s Band, Elizabeth Spencer, The Sterling Trio, Van & Schenck, The Victor Light Opera Company

    Pop Culture Facts & History

    Executed labor leader and songwriter Joe Hill had his ashes seized by the US federal government on Oct 8, 1917. The ashes were held for 71 years as they were seen as subversive. Before he died, Hill asked to be cremated and specified that his ashes be scattered in every state except Utah.

    The 1918 World Series marked the first time The Star-Spangled Banner was performed at a major league game. During the seventh-inning stretch of Game 1, the band began playing the song because the country was involved in World War I.

    A 1918 calendar is also suitable for 2013, 2019, 2002, 1991, 1985, 1974, 1963, 1957, 1946, 1935 and 1929

    The Sinking of the Lusitania was a cartoon short (longest at the time) by Windsor McCay…

    Enrico Caruso, the legendary opera singer, was paid $100,000, the equivalent of $1.75 Million today, to star in My Cousin, a silent movie.

    The United States Congress officially established time zones and approved the March 19, 1918 Standard Time Act.

    The Geographic Center of the United States was determined by balancing a cardboard cutout shape of the US on a point, near Lebanon, Kansas. It was accurate to within 20 miles.

    In 1918, pink was for boys because it was a stronger color, and the more delicate blue was reserved for girls.

    Ossip Bernstein, a famous chess grandmaster, was sentenced to death by the Bolsheviks in 1918. While he was facing the firing squad, a Russian officer who heard his name offered him the chance to prove his identity in a game of chess. He beat the officer and was released.

    Six hundred fifty-four sheep were killed by forked lightning when it struck a mountain in Wasatch National Park, Utah, on July 18, 1918.

    Over 100 waiters were arrested for poisoning bad tippers in Chicago. The Mickey Finn is most likely named after Michael “Mickey” Finn, the Lone Star Saloon and Palm Garden Restaurant manager, which operated from 1896 to 1903 in the Chicago Loop neighborhood on South State Street of Chicago. “Slipping someone a ‘Mickey’ was named after this assault.

    In Russia, the day after January 31st was February 14th, not February 1st – that’s the day Russia transitioned from the Julian to the Gregorian calendar.

    The Re-Gift:
    In 1915, Cecil Chubb bought Stonehenge as a gift for his wife. She didn’t like it, so he donated it to the nation in 1918.

    H1N1 – Spanish Flu

    The Spanish Flu: This was during World War I (also called The Great War), and many countries had limits on what the press could write about, except Spain, which was neutral. Thus, more reports came out about the flu from Spain, causing people to think it was primarily happening there.

    The 1918 Spanish Flu killed so many people in the US that it caused the average life expectancy in males to drop from 48.4 to 36.6 and 54.0 to 42.2 in females between 1917 and 1918.

    Some Scientists Have Never Seen A Movie Dept

    An unextinction is scientifically possible. Several viruses have been brought back, including the 1918 flu pandemic.

    WWI News

    When Manfred von Richthofen (the Red Baron) was shot down and killed in 1918, the British Army gave him a full military funeral, complete with clergy, a gun salute, and a wreath inscribed with, “To Our Gallant and Worthy Foe.”

    A carrier pigeon named Cher Ami saved 194 American soldiers by delivering a message to nearby support despite being blinded in one eye, shot through the breast, covered in blood, and with a leg hanging on by a tendon.

    The phrase “The First World War” was used as early as 1918, by Niall Ferguson, who felt it would not be the last.

    There is only a single known audio recording from WWI. It involves British troops firing gas shells at German positions during their advance on Lille, France, on October 9, 1918.

    A monument honors the almost one million Allied horses who died during the First World War in Ascot, near Windsor Castle, UK. Of one million drafted horses, only 62,000 returned in 1918.

    The USS Cyclops disappeared along with 306 crew and passengers in The Bermuda Triangle. No trace has ever been found, and it remains the single largest non-combat loss of life in US Naval history.

    Private John Parr was the first British soldier to die in World War 1. Almost a million more Brits died, and the last was Private George Edwin Ellison, just before the Armistice ending the war was signed in 1918. In an unplanned coincidence, the graves face each other just 15 feet apart at the same cemetery.

    Veterans Day originated as Armistice Day, marking the end of WW1 hostilities in 1918 in the 11th month, on the 11th day, at the 11th hour.

    After the Treaty of Versailles (end of WW I), the French Commander-in-chief said, “This is not a Peace. It is an Armistice for 20 years”. Twenty years and 65 days later, WW II began.

    The Disasters

    On February 26, 1918, one of the worst sports-related disasters occurred when the “Happy Valley Racecourse” grandstands in Happy Valley, Hong Kong, caught fire. Over 600 spectators were burned alive and 300 more were injured.

    The steamer Princess Sophia sank on Vanderbilt Reef near Juneau, Alaska, and 353 people died.

    The Great Train Wreck of 1918: in Nashville, Tennessee, an inbound local train collided with an outbound express, killing 101 people.

    The Mystery

    The USS Cyclops, which went missing in 1918 during WWI, remains the single most significant loss of life in U.S. Naval history not directly involving combat, and the ship’s fate is still unknown.

    Broadway Show

    Lightnin’ (Play) Opened on August 26, 1918, and closed on August 27, 1921

    Nobel Prize Winners

    Physics – Max Karl Ernst Ludwig Planck
    Chemistry – Fritz Haber
    Medicine – not awarded
    Literature – not awarded
    Peace – not awarded

    Popular and Best-selling Books From 1918

    Fiction Bestsellers

    1. The U.P. Trail by Zane Grey
    2. The Tree of Heaven by May Sinclair
    3. The Amazing Interlude by Mary Roberts Rinehart
    4. Dere Mable by Edward Streeter
    5. Oh, Money! Money! by Eleanor H. Porter
    6. Greatheart by Ethel M. Dell
    7. The Major by Ralph Connor
    8. The Pawns Count by E. Phillips Oppenheim
    9. A Daughter of the Land by Gene Stratton Porter
    10. Sonia by Stephen McKenna

    General Nonfiction Bestsellers

    1. Rhymes of a Red Cross Man by Robert W. Service
    2. Treasury of War Poetry by G.H. Clark
    3. With the Colors by Everard J. Appleton
    4. Recollections by Viscount Morley
    5. Laugh and Live by Douglas Fairbanks
    6. Mark Twain’s Letters edited by Albert Bigelow Paine
    7. Adventures and Letters of Richard Harding Davis by Richard Harding Davis
    8. Over Here by Edgar Guest
    9. Diplomatic Days by Edith O’Shaughnessy
    10. Poems of Alan Seeger by Alan Seeger

    War Nonfiction Bestsellers

    1. My Four Years in Germany by James W. Gerard
    2. The Glory of the Trenches by Coningsby Dawson
    3. Over the Top by Arthur Guy Empey
    4. A Minstrel In France by Harry Lauder
    5. Private Peat by Harold R. Peat
    6. Outwitting the Hun by Lieut. Pat O’Brien
    7. Face to Face with Kaiserism by James W. Gerard
    8. Carry On by Coningsby Dawson
    9. Out to Win by Coningsby Dawson
    10. Under Fire by Henri Barbusse

    Other Books of Note

    The Magnificent Ambersons by Booth Tarkington
    The Decline of the West, vol. 1 by Oswald Spengler
    The Elements of Style by William Strunk and E.B. White
    Eminent Victorians by Lytton Strachey
    My Antonia by Willa Cather
    The Polish Peasant in Europe and America by W.I. Thomas and Florian Znaniecki

    Sports

    World Series Champions: Boston Red Sox
    Stanley Cup Champs: Toronto Arenas
    U.S. Open Golf: not held (WWI)
    U.S. Tennis (Men/Ladies): Robert Lindley Murray/Molla Bjurstedt
    Wimbledon (Men/Women): not held (WWI)
    NCAA Football Champions: Pitt & Michigan
    Kentucky Derby Winner: Exterminator
    Boston Marathon Winner: Camp Devens relay team Time: 2:29:53

    More 1918 History Resources

    Most Popular Baby Names (BabyCenter.com)
    Popular and Notable Books (popculture.us) 
    Broadway Shows that Opened in 1918
    1918 Calendar, courtesy of Time and Date.com 
    Fact Monster
    1918 in Movies (according to IMDB) 
    Wikipedia 1918

  • 1917 History, Fun Facts and Trivia

    1917 History, Fun Facts and Trivia

    1917 History, Facts and Trivia

    Top Ten Baby Names of 1917

    Mary, Helen, Dorothy, Margaret, Ruth, John, William, James, Robert, Joseph

    US Life Expectancy

    (1917) Males: 48.4 years, Females: 54.0 years

    Firsts, Inventions, and Wonders

    Kiwanis International was founded in Detroit, Michigan

    The term “breakfast is the most important meal of the day” was popularized by cereal companies’ marketing campaigns after appearing in Good Health Magazine.

    At Piggly Wiggly grocery stores, the modern concept of a grocery store, where you get items off the shelf yourself, wasn’t invented until 1917.

    The Converse All-Star “Chuck Taylor” Basketball Shoe was first produced in 1917.

    The first use of OMG was in Lord Fisher’s September 9, 1917, letter to Winston Churchill.

    Melvin Jones founded Lions Clubs International.

    The Most Popular Singers and Artists of 1917 include

    The American Quartet, Elsie Baker, Bora Bayes, Henry Burr, Albert Campbell, Byron G. Harlan, Marion Harris, Charles Harrison, Al Jolson, Ada Jones, Lucy Isabelle Marsh, John McCormack, Billy Murray, The Original Dixieland Jazz Band, The Peerless Quartet, Prince’s Orchestra, Joseph C. Smith’s Orchestra, John Philip Sousa’s Band, The Sterling Trio, Van & Schenck, The Victor Military Band, Weber & Fields, Reinald Werrenrath, Anna Wheaton

    US Politics

    March 5, 1917 (Monday): Second inauguration of Woodrow Wilson

    Pop Culture Facts & History

    Jeannette Rankin, the first Congresswoman, served just two non-consecutive terms, starting in 1917 and 1941 and was the only person to vote against the declaration of war in both WWI and WWII.

    A bank in Utah was built using 80,000 bricks mailed via USPS in 50-pound packages to save on freight costs. The post office changed parcel post rules after that.

    Cape Canaveral is part of the Diocese of Orlando, making its Bishop technically Bishop of the Moon, according to the 1917 Code of Canon Law (“any newly discovered territory was placed under the jurisdiction of the diocese from which the expedition which discovered that territory left”).

    The Miracle of the Sun occurred in Fatima, Portugal, in 1917 and was accepted as a miracle by the Catholic Church in 1930. At least 30,000 people gathered to see a multicolored sun dancing in the sky.

    The United States purchased the Danish West Indies for $25,000,000 and renamed them the Virgin Islands.

    The Royal Family officially adopted ‘Windsor’ as their surname in 1917.

    WWI News:

    The model for Uncle Sam on the famous 1917 post I Want You is the face of the painter, James Montgomery Flagg. For effect, he aged his portrait and added the goatee beard. Flagg used his picture to avoid the need to find a model. It was partially inspired by a British recruitment poster showing Lord Kitchener in a similar pose.

    US troops in Paris stopped at the grave (composed of soil from the United States) of French Revolutionary War Hero, Marquis de Lafayette, and proclaimed, “Lafayette, we are here!”

    The Trading with the Enemy Act of 1917 enabled the U.S. government to seize private assets worth millions of dollars, including Bayer’s trademark on Aspirin.

    The Disaster

    The Halifax Explosion was a maritime disaster in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, that killed 2000 people and injured 9,000.

    Fake News

    The Cottingley Fairies appeared in a series of five photographs taken by cousins Elsie Wright (1901–88) and Frances Griffiths (1907–86)

    Emily Grant Hutchings tried to release a “Mark Twain” novel called Jap Herron after his death, claiming the dead author dictated the book using an Ouija board.

    Journalist H.L. Mencken published a hoax news article stating bathtubs were popularized in the US by President Millard Fillmore after he had one installed in the White House. Thirty years later, even after he admitted it was false, it was still being reprinted as fact.

    Spanish Flu

    The 1918 Spanish Flu killed so many people in the US that it caused the average life expectancy in males to drop from 48.4 to 36.6 and 54.0 to 42.2 in females between 1917 and 1918.

    Nobel Prize Winners

    Physics – Charles Glover Barkla
    Chemistry – not awarded
    Medicine – not awarded
    Literature – Karl Adolph Gjellerup, Henrik Pontoppidan
    Peace – International Committee of the Red Cross

    Popular and Best-selling Books From 1917

    Fiction Bestsellers

    1. Mr. Britling Sees It Through, by H.G. Wells
    2. The Light in the Clearing, by Irving Bacheller
    3. The Red Planet by William J. Locke
    4. The Road to Understanding by Eleanor H. Porter
    5. Wildfire by Zane Grey
    6. Christine by Alice Cholmondeley
    7. In the Wilderness by Robert S. Hichens
    8. His Family by Ernest Poole
    9. The Definite Object by Jeffrey Farnol
    10. The Hundredth Chance by Ethel M. Dell

    General Nonfiction Bestsellers

    1. Rhymes of a Red Cross Man by Robert W. Service
    2. The Plattsburg Manual by O.O. Ellis and E.B. Garey
    3. Raymond by Sir Oliver Lodge,
    4. Poems of Alan Seeger by Alan Seeger
    5. God the Invisible King by H.G. Wells
    6. Laugh and Live by Douglas Fairbanks
    7. Better Meals for Less Money by Mary Green

    War Nonfiction Bestsellers

    1. The First Hundred Thousand by Ian Hay
    2. My Home in the Field of Honor by Frances W. Huard
    3. A Student in Arms by Donald Hankey
    4. Over the Top by Arthur Guy Empey
    5. Carry On by Coningsby Dawson
    6. Getting Together by Ian Hay
    7. My Second Year of the War by Frederick Palmer
    8. The Land of Deepening Shadow by D. Thomas Curtin
    9. Italy, France and Britain at War by H.G. Wells
    10. The Worn Doorstep by Margaret Sherwood

    Other Books of Note

    On Growth and Form by D’Arcy Wentworth Thomas
    A Theology for the Social Gospel by Walter Rauschenbusch
    A Book of Prefaces by H.L. Mencken
    Social Rule by Elsie Clewes Parsons
    Prufrock by T.S. Eliot

    Sports

    World Series Champions: Chicago White Sox
    Stanley Cup Champs: Seattle Metropolitans
    U.S. Open Golf: not held (WWI)
    U.S. Tennis (Men/Ladies): Robert Lindley Murray/Molla Bjurstedt
    Wimbledon (Men/Women): not held (WWI)
    NCAA Football Champions: Georgia Tech
    Kentucky Derby Winner: Omar Khayyam
    Boston Marathon Winner: Bill Kennedy Time: 2:28:37

    More 1917 Facts & History Resources:

    Most Popular Baby Names (BabyCenter.com)
    Popular and Notable Books (popculture.us) 
    Broadway Shows that Opened in 1917
    1917 Calendar, courtesy of Time and Date.com 
    Fact Monster 
    1917 in Movies (according to IMDB) 
    Wikipedia 1917

  • 1916 History, Facts and Trivia

    1916 History, Facts and Trivia

    1916 History, Facts and Trivia

    Top Ten Baby Names of 1916

    Mary, Helen, Dorothy, Margaret, Ruth, John, William, James, Robert, Joseph

    US Life Expectancy

    (1916) Males: 49.6 years, Females: 54.3 years

    Firsts, Inventions, and Wonders

    Piggly Wiggly revolutionized grocery shopping by allowing customers to select their items, “To have no store clerks gab and smirk while folks are standing around ten deep to get waited on.”

    The Professional Golfers Association of America (PGA) was founded in New York City.

    Fall of a Nation, the 1916 sequel to D.W. Griffith’s Birth of a Nation, is considered the first sequel in film history, but no copies exist.

    The US Department of Interior formed the National Park Service.

    Mr. Peanut from Planters’ brand peanuts was created by 13-year-old Antonio Gentile, for a contest in 1916. He won $5. Mr. Peanut appeared in the Saturday Evening Post on February 23, 1918.

    Oxycodone, a narcotic painkiller closely related to codeine, was synthesized in Germany.

    Norman Rockwell’s’ first cover (Mother’s Day Off) for the Saturday Evening Post was published on May 20.

    Tristan Tzara is often credited for founding the Dadaism art movement.

    The Chicago Cubs played their first game at Weeghman Park (now Wrigley Field), defeating the Cincinnati Reds 7–6 in 11 innings.

    In 1916, John D. Rockefeller became the world’s first confirmed U.S. billionaire.

    The phrase “Founding Fathers” – usually referring to John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and George Washington – was coined by Warren G Harding in 1916.

    The Most Popular Singers and Artists of 1916 include

    The American Quartet, Sam Ash, Elsie Baker, Elizabeth Brice, Henry Burr, Albert Campbell, Enrico Caruso, Arthur Collins, Marguerite Dunlap, Marguerite Farrell, Arthur Fields, Byron G. Harlan, Charles Harrison, Al Jolson, Charles King, Olive Kline, Harry Macdonough, John McCormack, Lambert Murphy, Billy Murray, Geoffrey O’Hara, The Orpheus Quartet, The Peerless Quartet, Prince’s Orchestra, The Taylor Trio, The Victor Military Band, Walter Van Brunt, Elizabeth Wheeler

    Pop Culture Facts & History

    On October 7, 1916, the Georgia Tech Engineers defeated the Cumberland College Bulldogs 222–0. Georgia Tech’s coach was John Heisman; later, the Heisman Trophy was named after him in 1935.

    The Star-Spangled Banner, when written in 1814 as a poem by Francis Scott Key, was initially titled The Defence of Fort McHenry and kept its original title until the poem was paired with music and people nicknamed it Star-Spangled Banner in 1916. The melody is from an older English tune, To Anacreon in Heaven.

    An Arctic cold front slammed through Browning, Montana, dropping the temperature overnight, January 23, from 44°F to -56°F in 24 hours. The most dramatic 24-hour drop in temperature ever recorded in the US.

    White-Tailed Sea Eagles went extinct in Scotland in 1916 due to hunting and egg collecting. In 1975, a breeding pair from Norway was re-introduced, and by 2006, the 200th Sea Eagle egg hatched on the Isle of Skye.

    From 1860 through 1016, the British army required soldiers to have a mustache. That was revoked in October 1916, because the recruits were so young that some could not rustle up more than a thin, mousey streak.

    The Statue of Liberty’s torch has been closed to the public since July 30, 1916, when it sustained structural damage from the Black Tom explosion – an act of German sabotage.

    America’s last stagecoach robbery took place on December 5, 1916. A wagon headed for Jarbidge, NV, was hit. Fred Searcy, the driver, was killed, and $4,000 vanished. A drifter, Ben Kuhl, was tied to the crime by a bloody palm print. This marked the first time palm print evidence was used in a U.S. court. The $4,000 was never found.

    Frank Grigware was serving a life sentence at Leavenworth Prison when he escaped in 1910 and fled to Canada. By 1916, he was elected mayor of Spirit River, Alberta, Canada.

    A “blue discharge” was a form of administrative military discharge issued by the U.S. from 1916-1947. Neither honorable nor dishonorable, the blue discharge became the discharge of choice for commanders seeking to remove homosexual service members from the ranks.

    Jeanette Rankin was elected to the US House of Representatives in 1916, four years before women won the right to vote nationwide.

    The Movie Stars

    The term ‘movie star’ originated from Paramount Pictures. In 1916, the studio contracted 22 actors and honored each with a star on the logo.
    Based on Famous Players-Lasky (precursor to Paramount) members, they were Valentine Grant, Wallace Reed, Owen Moore, Donald Brian, Fanny Ward, Pauline Frederick, Theodore Roberts, Ann Pennington, Mary Pickford, Marguerite Clark, Mae Murray, Marie Doro, Louise Huff, Geraldine Farrer, Blanche Sweet, Anita King, Hazel dawn, Lou Tellegen, Cleo Ridgely, Victor Moore, Sessue Hayakawa, and Thomas Meighan.

    WWI News

    A miscalculation of Montana’s population led to 40,000 men being drafted into the 1st World War…10% of the state’s population.

    Due to the outbreak of World War I, the 1916 Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany, was canceled.

    The Tragedy

    In 1916, 2,223 Americans died in mining accidents.

    Nobel Prize Winners

    Physics – not awarded
    Chemistry – not awarded
    Medicine – not awarded
    Literature – Carl Gustaf Verner von Heidenstam
    Peace – not awarded

    Popular and Best-selling Books From 1916

    Fiction Bestsellers:

    1. Seventeen by Booth Tarkington
    2. When a Man’s a Man by Harold Bell Wright
    3. Just David by Eleanor H. Porter
    4. Mr. Britling Sees It Through by H.G. Wells
    5. Life and Gabriella by Ellen Glasgow
    6. The Real Adventure by Henry Kitchell Webster
    7. Bars of Iron by Ethel M. Dell
    8. Nan of Music Mountain by Frank H. Spearman
    9. Dear Enemy by Jean Webster
    10. The Heart of Rachael by Kathleen Norris

    Other Books of Note

    Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce
    A Course in General Linguistics by Ferdinand de Saussure
    Imperialism: The Highest Stage of Capitalism by Vladimir Lenin
    Democracy and Education by John Dewey
    Psychology of the Unconscious by C.  Jung (English translation by Beatrice M. Hinkle)
    The Passing of the Great Race by Madison Grant

    Sports

    World Series Champions: Boston Red Sox
    Stanley Cup Champs: Montreal Canadians
    U.S. Open Golf: Chick Evans
    U.S. Tennis (Men/Ladies): Richard Norris Williams/Molla Bjurstedt
    Wimbledon (Men/Women): not held (WWI)
    NCAA Football Champions: Pitt
    Kentucky Derby Winner: George Smith
    Boston Marathon Winner: Arthur Roth Time: 2:27:16

    More 1916 Facts & History Resources:

    Most Popular Baby Names (BabyCenter.com)
    Popular and Notable Books (popculture.us) 
    Broadway Shows that Opened in 1916
    1916 Calendar, courtesy of Time and Date.com 
    Fact Monster
    1916 in Movies (according to IMDB) 
    Wikipedia 1916

  • 1915 History, Fun Facts and Trivia

    1915 History, Fun Facts and Trivia

    1915 History, Facts and Trivia

    Top Ten Baby Names of 1915

    Mary, Helen, Dorothy, Margaret, Ruth, John, William, James, Robert, Joseph

    US Life Expectancy

    (1915) Males: 52.5 years, Females: 56.8 years

    Firsts, Inventions, and Wonders

    Growers got together to try and make their “Alligator Pears” sound more appealing. Collectively, they decided to change the name of the fruit to “Avocados.”

    The first performance of a ‘haunted house’ was the Orton and Spooner Ghost House, which opened in 1915 in Liphook, England.

    A raisin company executive spotted a teenage girl (Lorraine Collett) drying her curly brown hair and wearing her mother’s red bonnet. She hired her for a stunt promotion that had her dropping raisins from an airplane. Soon she became the company’s first symbol called, “Sun-Maid.”

    Tom Lyle Williams created the mascara “Maybelline” in 1915 when his sister Maybel used a mixture of Vaseline and coal dust to darken her eyelashes.

    Junior Chamber International (Jay-Cees) was founded in St. Louis, Missouri.

    Johnny Gruelle received a US Patent (#47789) for his Raggedy Ann Doll on September 7, 1915.

    Audrey Munson was the first person allowed to appear nude in a non-pornographic film, Inspiration. She was the model for fewer than 15 statues in New York City and is considered the first supermodel.

    Actress Theda Bara was the first modern Sex Symbol.

    Kiwanis International was founded in Detroit by Joseph C. Prance and Allen S. Browne.

    The first stop sign appeared in Detroit, Michigan. It was white with black letters.

    Wrigley’s Gum shipped sticks of gum to every address listed in US phone books as an early viral marketing campaign.

    Chicago’s Wrigley Field became the first baseball stadium to allow fans to keep home runs and foul balls hit into the stands.

    The term “Crime Against Humanity” was first used about the Armenian Genocide by the Allied powers in 1915.

    The Most Popular Singers and Artists of 1915 include

    Henry Burr, Albert Campbell, Arthur Collins, The Conway’s Band, Alma Gluck, Byron Harlan, Charles Harrison, Morton Harvey, Al Jolson, Irving Kaufman, Olive Kline, The Lyric Quartet, Harry Macdonough, George MacFarlane, John McCormack, Lambert Murphy, Billy Murray, The Peerless Quartet, Prince’s Orchestra, Homer Rodeheaver, Cal Stewart, Reinald Werrenrath, Bert Williams

    Pop Culture News

    Inventor Buckminster Fuller tried to document his life as thoroughly as possible. Every 15 minutes from 1915 to his death in 1983, he recorded his life in his diary named ‘Dymaxion Chronofile.’ It contains 14,000 pages.

    The British Board of Film Classification forbade images of drug misuse as early as 1915, not because there was a significant societal problem but because it was thought that these scenes might arouse curiosity.

    Birth of a Nation was the first movie screened at the White House and even used excerpts from then-President Woodrow Wilson’s book in the subtitles. Wilson was a member of the KKK.

    There were numerous reports of a theoretical planet named ‘Vulcan’ – closer to the Sun than Mercury – until the planet was finally disproved in 1915 by Einstein’s Theory of General Relativity.

    The US Supreme Court handed down a decision in 1915 that established that free speech did not extend to motion pictures because they were not a form of art but a business. It was overturned in 1952

    “The Class the Stars Fell On”… 36% (59 cadets) of the 1915 West Point Class attained the rank of General. Members included Dwight D. Eisenhower and Omar N. Bradley.

    Someone in the Red Ash Coal mine (Laurel Run, Pennsylvania) forgot his carbide lamp hanging from a timber beam that subsequently caught fire. The mine fire continues to burn today.

    The earliest known instance of “Jazz” was used to refer to music in the Chicago Daily Tribune on July 11, 1915.

    The real Chef Boyardee, Ettore “Hector” Boiardi, directed the catering at President Woodrow Wilson’s wedding reception 1915.

    The phrase “when life gives you lemons, make lemonade” was coined by Elbery Hubbard, an anarchist, when he was writing the obituary for his friend, Marshall P. Wilder, a famous dwarf actor.

    Cecil Chubb bought Stonehenge as a gift for his wife. She didn’t like it, so he gave it to England in 1918.

    When the Ford Model T first came out in 1909, it cost $850. By 1913, it had fallen to $550; finally, by 1915, the price had dropped to $350. But by the 1920s, the price had fallen to $250 per car. On October 12, 1915, the 1,000,000th car was built by Ford.

    One of the Hawaiian islands, Ni’ihau, has been privately owned since 1864 and closed to outside visitors since 1915.

    California became the first state to ban cannabis.

    The Horrible

    The SS Eastland, a passenger ship, capsized in its dock in downtown Chicago, killing 844 people on July 24, 1915.

    The Typo:

    The Washington Post wrote that President Woodrow Wilson spent an evening “entering” his fiancée, instead of “entertaining” her.

    Nobel Prize Winners

    Chemistry – Richard Willstätter
    Literature – Romain Rolland
    Medicine – not awarded
    Peace – not awarded
    Physics – William Henry Bragg and William Lawrence Bragg

    Popular and Best-selling Books From 1915

    Fiction Bestsellers

    1. The Turmoil by Booth Tarkington
    2. A Far Country by Winston Churchill
    3. Michael O’Halloran by Gene Stratton Porter
    4. Pollyanna Grows Up by Eleanor H. Porter
    5. K by Mary Roberts Rinehart
    6. Jaffery by William J. Locke
    7. Felix O’Day by F. Hopkinson Smith
    8. The Harbor by Ernest Poole
    9. The Lone Star Ranger by Zane Grey
    10. Angela’s Business by Henry Sydnor Harrison

    Other Books of Note

    The Good Soldier by Ford Madox Ford
    The Rainbow by D.H. Lawrence
    Of Human Bondage by W. Somerset Maugham
    The Golden Bough by James George Frazer
    America’s Coming of Age by Van Wyck Brooks
    The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka
    Herland by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
    The House on Henry Street by Lillian Wald
    Spoon River Anthology by Edgar Lee Masters

    Sports

    World Series Champions: Boston Red Sox
    Stanley Cup Champs: Vancouver Millionaires
    U.S. Open Golf: Jerome Travers
    U.S. Tennis (Men/Ladies): Bill Johnston/Molla Bjurstedt
    Wimbledon (Men/Women): not held (WWI)
    NCAA Football Champions: Cornell
    Kentucky Derby Winner: Regret
    Boston Marathon Winner: Édouard Fabre Time: 2:31:41

    More 1915 Facts & History Resources:

    Most Popular Baby Names (BabyCenter.com)
    Popular and Notable Books (popculture.us) 
    Broadway Shows that Opened in 1915
    1915 Calendar, courtesy of Time and Date.com 

    Fact Monster
    1915 in Movies (according to IMDB) 
    Wikipedia 1915

  • 1914 History, Facts and Trivia

    1914 History, Facts and Trivia

     1914 History, Facts and Trivia

    1914 History Rundown:

    • January 5 – Ford Motor Company Introduced $5 Workday: Henry Ford announced an eight-hour workday and a minimum wage of $5, doubling the average wage and setting new labor standards.
    • January 12 – Sakurajima Volcano Erupted in Japan: The eruption caused significant damage and made the island connect to the Ōsumi Peninsula.
    • February 12 – First Feature-Length Film Shot in Hollywood Released: The Squaw Man, directed by Cecil B. DeMille and Oscar Apfel, premiered in the U.S., marking Hollywood’s emergence as a film production center.
    • March 1 – Republic of China Joined the Universal Postal Union: China became a member of the international postal body, enhancing its global communication links.
    • March 9 – Panama Canal Completed: The construction of the Panama Canal was finished, significantly reducing maritime travel time between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.
    • April 9 – Tampico Affair: A misunderstanding involving U.S. Navy sailors and Mexican troops in Tampico escalated tensions between the United States and Mexico.
    • April 20 – Ludlow Massacre in Colorado: The Colorado National Guard attacked a tent colony of striking coal miners, resulting in numerous deaths and highlighting labor disputes in the U.S.
    • May 7 – The British House of Lords Passed the Irish Home Rule Bill: The bill granted limited self-government to Ireland, though its implementation was delayed due to World War I.
    • May 15 – Henri Rabaud’s Opera ‘Marouf’ Premiered in Paris: The opera Marouf, savetier du Caire debuted, becoming one of Rabaud’s most celebrated works.
    • June 28 – Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand: Heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, and his wife Sophie were assassinated in Sarajevo by Gavrilo Princip, a Bosnian Serb nationalist.
    • July 5 – Kaiser Wilhelm II Promised Support to Austria-Hungary: Germany assured Austria-Hungary of its backing in any conflict against Serbia, influencing the escalation toward World War I.
    • July 23 – Austria-Hungary Issued Ultimatum to Serbia: Following the assassination, Austria-Hungary presented demands to Serbia, increasing tensions.
    • July 28 – Austria-Hungary Declared War on Serbia: Marking the beginning of World War I, Austria-Hungary initiated hostilities against Serbia.
    • August 1 – Germany Declared War on Russia: Following Russia’s mobilization, Germany declared war, further expanding the conflict.
    • August 3 – Germany Declared War on France: Germany expanded the war by declaring war on France, implementing the Schlieffen Plan.
    • August 4 – Germany Invaded Belgium; Britain Entered the War: Germany’s invasion of neutral Belgium prompted the United Kingdom to declare war on Germany.
    • August 23 – Battle of Mons: The British Expeditionary Force engaged German forces in Belgium, marking the first major British action of World War I.
      History
    • September 5–12 – First Battle of the Marne: Allied forces halted the German advance into France, leading to trench warfare on the Western Front.
      History
    • October 19–November 22 – First Battle of Ypres: Allied and German forces clashed in Belgium, resulting in heavy casualties and a stalemate.
      History
    • November 1 – Battle of Coronel: A naval engagement off the coast of Chile where the German East Asia Squadron defeated a British squadron.
    • December 8 – Battle of the Falkland Islands: The British Royal Navy defeated the German East Asia Squadron, reasserting naval dominance.
    • December 16 – German Navy Bombarded English Coastal Towns: Scarborough, Hartlepool, and Whitby were shelled, causing civilian casualties and outrage in Britain.
    • December 24–25 – Christmas Truce: An unofficial ceasefire occurred along parts of the Western Front, with soldiers from opposing sides fraternizing and exchanging greetings.
    • Panama Canal Opened to Traffic: The canal began operations, facilitating maritime trade by connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.
    • Establishment of Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in the U.S.: The FTC was created to prevent unfair business practices and promote consumer protection.

    Top Ten Baby Names of 1914

    Mary, Helen, Dorothy, Margaret, Ruth, John, William, James, Robert, Joseph

    US Life Expectancy

    (1914) Males: 52.0 years, Females: 56.8 years

    Firsts, Inventions, and Wonders

    The world’s first electric traffic signal was placed on the corner of Euclid Avenue and East 105th Street in Cleveland, Ohio, on August 5, 1914.

    The first Commercial Airline was the St. Petersburg–Tampa Airboat Line; the first commercial flight was on January 1, 1914.

    The American Society of Composers, Authors & Publishers (ASCAP) was formed in New York, NY.

    The Perils of Pauline, a movie serial, debuted.

    Harry Fox introduced The Foxtrot at the New Amsterdam Roof Garden in NYC.

    The Panama Canal opened.

    The term “Cup of Joe” was invented to mock US Secretary of Navy Josephus Daniels, who banned alcohol consumption in 1914, replacing it with coffee.

    On May 8, 1914, the US Congress passed a law designating the second Sunday in May as Mother’s Day. It is still celebrated today.

    H.G. Wells coined the term “Atomic Bomb” in his book The World Set Free.

    The Most Popular Singers and Artists of 1914 include

    The American Quartet, Nora Bayes, Henry Burr, Albert Campbell, Helen Clark, Arthur Collins, Marguerite Dunlap, Byron G. Harlan, Charles Harrison, Joe Hayman, The Heidelberg Quartet, Irving Kaufman, Grace Kerns, George MacFarlane, John McCormack, Billy Murray, Will Oakland, The Peerless Quartet, Prince’s Orchestra, Manual Romain, Maggie Teyte, Walter Van Brunt, The Victor Military Band

    Pop Culture Facts & History

    Gertie the Dinosaur by Winsor was one of the earliest animated films and the first to use keyframes, animation loops, tracing paper, and feature a dinosaur. The 12-minute film consists of over 10,000 individually traced frames and took several years to complete.

    The Ford Model T wasn’t just available in black. From 1908-1913, it was available in gray, green, blue, and red. Only in 1914 was the “any color as long as it’s black” policy introduced.

    Ford Motor Co wages went from $2.40/9-hr day to $5.00/8-hr day.

    When Thomas Edison’s factory burned to the ground, destroying one-of-a-kind prototypes and causing millions in damage, he said: “Thank goodness all our mistakes were burned up. Now we can start fresh again.”

    Charlie Chaplin’s first appearance as The Tramp was in Kid Auto Races at Venice

    The RMS Empress of Ireland had a cat named Emmy. She never missed a voyage until May 28, 1914, when she refused to go aboard. The ship left without her and sank the next day.

    Seattle’s Smith Tower was the tallest building on the Westcoast 1914 until the Space Needle opened in 1962

    Speedo swimwear originated in 1914 under the brand name ‘Fortitude’. It didn’t become known by its current brand name until 1928.

    The actor credited for performing in the most movies for a long time was Oliver Hardy, of Laurel and Hardy fame, with a record 417 movies between 1914 and 1951. Recently, others have gotten more screen credits than he, including Frank Welker, Eric Roberts, and many voice actors.

    Passenger Pigeons were once the most abundant bird in the world. John James Audubon once saw a flock that took three days to pass. Alexander Wilson reckoned that a flock he saw contained 2,230,272,000 individuals. On September 1, 1914, Martha, the world’s last passenger pigeon, died alone in 1914 at the Cincinnati, Ohio Zoo.

    The Coca-Cola Company was flooded with look-alike competitors. The bottlers requested design proposals for their product: a “bottle so distinct that you would recognize if by feel in the dark or lying broken on the ground,” and the initial Classic Coke green bottle was released in 1916.

    The most outstanding high school football team of all time was in Massachusetts. The 1914 Everett Crimson Tide, went 13-0, won the national title, and outscored their opponents 600-0 throughout the season.

    The famous “Uncle Sam Wants You,” and Smokey Bear’s “Only You Can Prevent Forest Fires” posters are both imitations of a British Army recruitment poster from 1914 – “Lord Kitchener Wants You.”

    WWI in History

    Franz Ferdinand, Archduke of Austria, and his wife Sophie were assassinated in Sarajevo by Serb nationalist Gavrilo Princip.
    British WWI soldier Thomas Hughes tossed a beer bottle with a letter to his wife into the English Channel. He was killed two days later. In 1999, a fisherman dredged up the bottle in the River Thames. Although Hughes’ wife had died in 1979, it was delivered to his 86-year-old daughter.

    The Christmas Truce

    On Christmas in 1914, German and Allied Troops had a truce and sang songs together, gave presents to each other, and even played soccer. The Germans won 3-2.

    The Horrible

    The Influenza Pandemic of 1913-1914, also known as ‘The Spanish Flu,’ killed more people than WWI. Casualties were around 30 million. (not to be confused with the Pandemic of 1918-1920, which killed over 50,000,000 people.

    The Ludlow Massacre

    On April 20, 1914, the Colorado National Guard fired on a camp of striking miners and their families, killing at least 19, including 11 children.

    The Extinction

    The final Passenger Pigeon in the wild was shot in 1901. The last, Martha, died in the Cincinnati Zoo on September 1, 1914.

    Nobel Prize Winners

    Physics – Max von Laue
    Chemistry – Theodore William Richards
    Medicine – Róbert Bárány
    Literature – not awarded
    Peace – not awarded
    The Nobel Peace Prize was not awarded for WWI (1914-1916) and WWII (1939-1943). The International Committee of the Red Cross was the first winner after each war.

    Popular and Best-selling Books From 1914

    Fiction Bestsellers

    1. The Eyes of the World by Harold Bell Wright
    2. Pollyanna by Eleanor H. Porter
    3. The Inside of the Cup by Winston Churchill
    4. The Salamander by Owen Johnson
    5. The Fortunate Youth by William J. Locke
    6. T. Tembarom by Frances Hodgson Burnett
    7. Penrod by Booth Tarkington
    8. Diane of the Green Van by Leona Dalrymple
    9. The Devil’s Garden by W.B. Maxwell
    10. The Prince of Graustark by George Barr McCutcheon

    Other Books of Note

    Tender Buttons by Gertrude Stein
    Other People’s Money by Louis Brandeis
    Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw
    Drift and Mastery by Walter Lippmann
    Behaviorism by John D. Watson

    Sports

    World Series Champions: Boston Braves
    Stanley Cup Champs: Toronto Hockey Club
    U.S. Open Golf: Walter Hagen
    U.S. Tennis (Men/Ladies): Richard Norris Williams/Mary Browne
    Wimbledon (Men/Women): Norman Brookes/Dorothea Lambert Chambers
    NCAA Football Champions: Army
    Kentucky Derby Winner: Old Rosebud
    Boston Marathon Winner: James Duffy Time: 2:25:14

    More 1914 Facts & History Resources:

    Most Popular Baby Names (BabyCenter.com)
    Popular and Notable Books (popculture.us) 
    Broadway Shows that Opened in 1914
    1914 Calendar, courtesy of Time and Date.com 
    Fact Monster
    1914 in Movies (according to IMDB) 
    Wikipedia 1914

     

  • 1913 History, Facts and Trivia

    1913 History, Facts and Trivia

    1913 History, Facts and Trivia

    Top Ten Baby Names of 1913

    Mary, Helen, Dorothy, Margaret, Ruth, John, William, James, Robert, Joseph

    US Life Expectancy

    (1913) Males: 50.3 years, Females: 55.0 years

    Firsts, Inventions, and Wonders

    America had a transcontinental highway in 1913, The Lincoln Highway, from Times Square to Lincoln Park in San Francisco.

    The clothing zipper was invented (and became more popular by the 1930s).

    Established in 1896, Cracker Jacks added small toys to their packages in 1913.

    Alfred Carlton Gilbert’s Erector Sets went on sale.

    Krazy Kat by George Herriman debuted in the New York Evening Journal.

    The Actors’ Equity Association was founded.

    Camel Cigarettes went on sale for the first time.

    The modern “word-cross” puzzle, created by Arthur Wynne, was published in the New York World newspaper.

    Igor Stravinsky’s ballet score The Rite of Spring premiered in Paris. The audience did not like it.

    William Knox became the first in the American Bowling Congress to bowl 300.

    The Palace Theater opened at 1564 Broadway, New York City.

    The term ‘Lucid Dreaming,’ used to describe when someone becomes aware that they are dreaming while dreaming, was coined by Fredrick van Eeden.

    Sporting Goods company Wilson was opened to use animal by-products from New York slaughterhouses. Its first products were strings for tennis rackets and violins.

    The Most Popular Singers and Artists of 1913 include

    The American Quartet, Elsie Baker, Henry Burr, Albert Campbell, Enrico Caruso, Helen Clark, Arthur Collins, Byron G. Harlon, Charles Harrison, James F. Harrison, The Hayden Quartet, Al Jolson, Ada Jones, Olive Kline, Christie MacDonald, Harry Macdonough, John McCormack, Billy Murray, Will Oakland, Chauncey Olcott, The Peerless Quartet, Manual Romain, Walter Van Brunt, Reinald Werrenrath, Bert Williams

    US Politics

    March 4, 1913 (Tuesday): First inauguration of Woodrow Wilson

    Pop Culture Facts & History

    A survey of US children working under challenging conditions in factories found that 412 out of 500 would instead work in sweatshops than the “monotony, humiliation, and cruelty” of school.

    The Monte Carlo Fallacy – during a game of roulette in Monte Carlo, the ball fell in black 26 times in a row. (odds 1 in 138,600,000)

    Sigmund Freud, Joseph Stalin, Hitler, and Trotsky frequented the same café, the “Café Central,” located at Herrengasse 14, in the Innere Stadt first district of Vienna.

    Before the income tax was enacted in 1913, the U.S. government got up to 40% of its revenue from alcohol taxes. Without the income tax in place, the Prohibition Amendment would likely not have been proposed by the Senate in 1917.

    Before the 17th Amendment was adopted in 1913, senators were chosen by state legislatures rather than elected by the people they represented like we do today.

    On January 1, The British Board of Film Censors was founded.

    At the Great Gettysburg Reunion of 1913, two men purchased a hatchet, walked to where their regiments had fought, and buried it. Over 50,000 veterans from both sides attended, without any altercation.

    Thomas Jefferson wrote his State of the Union messages, instead of delivering them in a speech like George Washington. All presidents followed Jefferson’s lead until Woodrow Wilson resurrected Washington’s precedent in 1913.

    Owens Lake is located in southeastern California; it has been primarily dry since 1913, when the Owens River was diverted to supply water to Los Angeles. It is now called the largest source of dust pollution in the entire United States.

    The hottest day in recorded history. It occurred on July 10, 1913, in Death Valley, CA, where the temperature reached 134.1 degrees.

    The record single-day snowfall for the entire United States is five feet three inches (63 inches), which occurred in Georgetown, Colorado, on December 12, 1913.

    The United State’s Federal Reserve System was created via the Federal Reserve Act.

    The statue of The Little Mermaid in Copenhagen, Denmark, was completed.

    Nobel Prize Winners

    Physics – Heike Kamerlingh Onnes
    Chemistry – Alfred Werner
    Medicine – Charles Richet
    Literature – Rabindranath Tagore
    Peace – Henri La Fontaine

    Popular and Best-selling Books From 1913

    Fiction Bestsellers

    1. The Inside of the Cup by Winston Churchill
    2. V.V.’s Eyes by Henry Sydnor Harrison
    3. Laddie by Gene Stratton Porter
    4. The Judgment House by Sir Gilbert Parker
    5. Heart of the Hills by John Fox Jr
    6. The Amateur Gentleman by Jeffrey Farnol
    7. The Woman Thou Gavest Me by Hall Caine
    8. Pollyanna by Eleanor H. Porter
    9. The Valiants of Virginia by Hallie Erminie Rives
    10. T. Tembarom by Frances Hodgson Burnett

    Nonfiction Bestsellers

    1. Crowds by Gerald Stanley Lee
    2. Germany and the Germans by Price Collier
    3. Zone Policeman 88 by Harry A. Franck
    4. The New Freedom by Woodrow Wilson
    5. South America by James Bryce
    6. Your United States by Arnold Bennett
    7. The Promised Land by Mary Antin
    8. Auction Bridge To-Day by Milton C. Work
    9. Three Plays by Eugene Brieux
    10. Psychology and Industrial Efficiency by Hugo Munsterberg

    Other Books of Note

    Sons and Lovers by D.H. Lawrence
    An Economic Interpretation of the Constitution of the United States by Charles Beard
    Swann’s Way (English translation, 1922) by Marcel Proust
    Principia Mathematica by Alfred North Whitehead and Bertrand Russell
    Pollyanna by Eleanor H. Porter
    A Preface to Politics by Walter Lippmann
    The Problem of Christianity by Josiah Royce
    O Pioneers by Willa Cather

    Sports

    World Series Champions: Philadelphia Athletics
    Challenge Cup Champs: Quebec Bulldogs
    U.S. Open Golf: Francis Ouimet
    U.S. Tennis (Men/Ladies): Maurice McLoughlin/Mary Browne
    Wimbledon (Men/Women): Laurence Doherty/Dorothea Lambert Chambers
    NCAA Football Champions: Harvard
    Kentucky Derby Winner: Donerail
    Boston Marathon Winner: Fritz Carlson Time: 2:25:14

    More 1913 Facts & History Resources:

    Most Popular Baby Names (BabyCenter.com)
    Popular and Notable Books (popculture.us) 
    Broadway Shows that Opened in 1913
    1913 Calendar, courtesy of Time and Date.com 
    Fact Monster
    1913 in Movies (according to IMDB) 
    Wikipedia 1913

  • 1912 History, Facts and Trivia

    1912 History, Facts and Trivia

    1912 History, Facts and Trivia

    Top Ten Baby Names of 1912

    Mary, Helen, Dorothy, Margaret, Ruth, John, William, James, Robert, Joseph

    US Life Expectancy

    (1912) Males: 51.5 years, Females: 55.9 years

    Firsts, Inventions, and Wonders

    Paramount Pictures (the Famous Players Film Company) was founded in 1912, 23 days after the sinking of the Titanic. The first film was about the Titanic.

    Sunshine made Hydrox Cookies in 1908, and Oreo copied them in 1912.

    Juliette Gordon Low founded Girl Scouts of the United States of America (GSUSA).

    Mrs. Luther Halsey Gulick officially founded the Camp Fire Girls organization. It was informally started in 1910.

    Arthur Rose Eldred, a 17-year-old member of Troop 1 of Rockville Centre, Long Island, became the first Eagle Scout.

    Tarzan of the Apes by Edgar Rice Burroughs was published.

    Fenway Park opened in Boston.

    The Beverly Hills Hotel opened.

    Wilbur Scoville created the Scoville Organoleptic Test which has become standardized today as the Scoville Scale, which we use to measure the spiciness in chili peppers.

    Roald Amundsen announced his discovery of the South Pole.

    Memphis Blues, by W.C. Handy, was published. It is usually recognized as one of the first blues songs.

    The Helen Hayes Theater opened at 240 West 44th Street, New York, NY.

    Frederick Rodman Law was paid to Jump off the Brooklyn Bridge for A Leap of Love, starring Ethel Wright, becoming the first movie stuntman in 1912.

    The 1912 Olympics was the last time that gold medals were solid gold. Since then, they’ve been silver with gold plating.

    ‘Discovered’ by Charles Dawson in 1912, The Piltdown Man became the most famous paleoanthropological hoax ever.

    The Most Popular Singers and Artists of 1912 include

    The American Quartet, Elsie Baker, Henry Burr, Albert Campbell, Enrico Caruso, Arthur Collins, The Columbia Stellar Quartet, Dolly Connolly, Alma Gluck, Byron G. Harlon, The Heidelberg Quartet, Louise Homer, Al Jolson, Ada Jones, Harry Lauder, Christie MacDonald, Harry Macdonough, Lucy Isabelle Marsh, John McCormack, Reed Miller, Billy Murray, Will Oakland, The Peerless Quartet, Prince’s Orchestra, Bob Roberts, William H. Thompson, Alan Turner, Walter Van Brunt, Victor Light Opera Company

    Pop Culture Facts & History

    J.P. Morgan of JPMorgan Chase Co. Banking and Milton Hershey of Hershey’s Chocolate were both in Europe and planned to travel back to the US on Titanic’s Maiden Voyage but made other plans.

    The empire with the most extended longevity in history was the Chinese Empire. It began in 221 BC and ended in 1912 AD, 2133 years of existence over nine major family dynasties.

    The Musketeers of Pig Alley     is credited as the first gangster film.

    Violet Jessop (October 2, 1887 – May 5, 1971) was a stewardess/nurse aboard the Oceanliner Olympic when it collided with a warship in 1911. She was aboard Titanic (1912) and the Britannic (1916) when they sank. She survived all three events.

    The North Korean calendar is based on Kim Il-Sung’s birth year, 1912.

    Alaska (Seward’s Folly) was bought from Russia in 1867 for $7.2 million. It became the organized Territory of Alaska in 1912. Before that, it was the District of Alaska. It became the 49th state in 1959.

    In 1912’s Broadway play, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, they were Blick, Flick, Glick, Plick, Quee, Snick, and Whick.

    The empire with the longest longevity in history was the Chinese Empire, beginning in 221 BC and ending in 1912 AD, 2133 years of existence. #9dynasties

    Created in 1894, the Michelin Man’s real name is Bibendum, and the reason he’s white is because he was created before carbon was added as a preservative and a strengthener to the basic rubber material. Before 1912, tires were a gray-white or light and translucent-beige color.

    The US Postal Service regularly delivered mail on Sundays until 1912.

    A criminologist named Arthur MacDonald suggested making it a misdemeanor to call assassins publicly, stating, “This would lessen the hope for glory, renown or notoriety, which is a great incentive to such crimes.”

    A 400+ pound meteor exploded over Holbrook, Arizona.

    Under the provisions of the 1912 Scottish Protection of Animals Act, the Loch Ness monster is a protected species.

    Franz Reichelt tried to demonstrate his parachute design by jumping off the first level (about 187 feet) of the Eiffel Tower. Police and friends tried to convince him to use a dummy instead, but he insisted on testing it himself. His prototype failed, and he fell to his death.

    How would you do with an Eighth-Grade 1912 Kentucky School test?

    The Pink Cherry Blossoms in Washington, DC, were a gift from Japan. In 1912, Japan sent more than 3,000 seeds to be planted near the Potomac River as a symbol of friendship between the two nations.

    In the US Election of 1912, there were four candidates for President: William Taft (Republican), Theodore Roosevelt (Bull Moose Party), Eugene V. Debs (Socialist), and Woodrow Wilson (Democrat). Wilson won with 41.8% of the vote.

    The first dramatic film of the Titanic sinking was released 29 days after the event in 1912. It was written by and stars Dorothy Gibson, an actual survivor.

    1912 Olympics News

    Today’s Olympic Gold Medals are made of Silver. The last time the Olympic medals were made of solid gold was the 1912 Olympic Games in Stockholm, Sweden. Today’s gold medals are 92.5% silver.

    Shizo Kanaguri, an Olympic marathon runner, quit, went home to Japan without telling officials, and was considered a missing person in Sweden for 50 years. In 1966, he was invited to complete the marathon. His net time: 54 years, eight months, six days, 5 hours, 32 minutes, and 20.379 seconds.

    The oldest Olympic gold medallist, Oscar Swahn, was 64 and 258 days old when he won gold for Shooting in 1912.

    When Native American athlete Jim Thorpe was awarded his two Olympic Gold Medals in 1912, the King of Sweden said, “You, sir, are the greatest athlete in the world,” to which Thorpe replied, “Thanks, King”. Jim was stripped of the medals won in the 1912 Olympics for receiving money for playing semi-pro baseball two years earlier. They were reinstated in 1983, 30 years after his death.

    Nobel Prize Winners

    Physics – Nils Gustaf Dalén
    Chemistry – Victor Grignard, Paul Sabatier
    Medicine – Alexis Carrel
    Literature – Gerhart Johann Robert Hauptmann
    Peace – Elihu Root

    Popular and Best-selling Books From 1912

    Fiction Bestsellers

    1. The Harvester by Gene Stratton Porter
    2. The Street Called Straight by Basil King
    3. Their Yesterdays by Harold Bell Wright
    4. The Melting of Molly by Maria Thompson Daviess
    5. A Hoosier Chronicle by Meredith Nicholson
    6. The Winning of Barbara Worth by Harold Bell Wright
    7. The Just and the Unjust by Vaughan Kester
    8. The Net by Rex Beach
    9. Tante by Anne Douglas Sedgwick
    10. Fran by J. Breckenridge Ellis

    Nonfiction Bestsellers

    1. The Promised Land by Mary Antin
    2. The Montessori Method by Maria Montessori
    3. South America by James Bryce
    4. A New Conscience and an Ancient Evil by Jane Addams
    5. Three Plays by Eugene Brieux
    6. Your United States by Arnold Bennett
    7. Creative Evolution by Henri Bergson
    8. How to Live on Twenty-Four Hours a Day by Arnold Bennett
    9. Woman and Labor by Olive Schreiner
    10. Mark Twain by Albert Bigelow Paine

    Other Books of Note

    The New History by James Harvey Robinson
    The Montessori Method by Maria Montessori
    The Promised Land by Mary Antin,
    Ripostes by Ezra Pound\
    Tarzan of the Apes by Edgar Rice Burroughs
    Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man by James Weldon Johnson
    Elementary Forms of Religious Life by Emile Durkheim

    Sports

    World Series Champions: Boston Red Sox
    Challenge Cup Champs: Quebec Bulldogs
    U.S. Open Golf: John McDermott
    U.S. Tennis (Men/Ladies): Maurice McLoughlin/Mary Browne
    Wimbledon (Men/Women): Laurence Doherty/Ethel Larcombe
    NCAA Football Champions: Harvard & Penn State
    Kentucky Derby Winner: Worth
    Boston Marathon Winner: Michael J. Ryan Time: 2:21:18

    More 1912 Facts & History Resources:

    Most Popular Baby Names (BabyCenter.com)
    Popular and Notable Books (popculture.us) 
    Broadway Shows that Opened in 1912
    1912 Calendar, courtesy of Time and Date.com 
    Fact Monster
    1912 in Movies (according to IMDB) 
    Wikipedia 1910

  • 1911 History, Facts and Trivia

    1911 History, Facts and Trivia

    1911 History, Facts and Trivia

    Top Ten Baby Names of 1911

    Mary, Helen, Margaret, Dorothy, Ruth, John, William, James, George, Robert

    US Life Expectancy

    (1911) Males: 50.9 years, Females: 54.4 years

    Firsts, Inventions, and Wonders

    The Morton Salt Company began adding magnesium carbonate to its product, which stopped the salt from caking during damp or humid temperatures. Hence their tagline, “When it rains, it pours.”

    The first use of a rear-view mirror was at the first Indy 500 in Ray Harroun’s car. #hewon

    George Seldon, a patent lawyer, and possibly the first patent troll, was granted the patent (#549,160) to cars in 1895. He got a % of every sale in the US until 1911, when it was overturned, mainly through the efforts of Henry Ford. He never built a functioning automobile.

    Crisco Shortening was introduced by Procter & Gamble.

    The world’s first official airmail flight was piloted by Henri Pequet, who flew with 6,500 letters a distance of 13 km (8.1 mi) from Allahabad to Naini – the nearest station on the Bombay-Calcutta line in British India, on February 18, 1911

    The Carnegie Corporation of New York was founded.

    The first airplane to land on a ship occurred on January 18, 1911. Eugene Ely landed on the USS Pennsylvania in San Francisco Bay.

    Samuel J. Battle became the first black police officer in New York City.

    The Most Popular Singers and Artists of 1911 include

    The American Quartet, Henry Burr, Albert Campbell, Enrico Caruso, Arthur Clough, Arthur Collins, Byron G. Harlan, Victor Herbert, and His Orchestra, Ada Jones, Fritz Kreisler, The Lyric Quartet, Harry Macdonough, Lucy Isabelle Marsh, John McCormack, Reed Miller, Eddie Morton, Billy Murray, Will Oakland, The Peerless Quartet, Prince’s Orchestra, Blanche Ring, Bob Roberts, Frank Stanley, That Girl Quartet, Sophie Tucker, Walter Van Brunt, Victor Light Opera Company, Reinald Werrenrath, Elizabeth Wheeler

    1911 Quotes

    “It is a safe rule to apply that when a mathematical or philosophical author writes with a misty profundity, he is talking nonsense.”
    – Albert Whitehead, An Introduction to Mathematics

    Pop Culture Facts & History

    Vincenzo Peruggia, wanting to bring the Mona Lisa back to Italy after “Napoleon stole it,” just walked into the Louvre Museum, removed the painting, took it to a service staircase, removed the frame, put it under his smock, and walked out with it in plain sight. It sat in his apartment for two years. The theft helped make the Mona Lisa famous.

    Richard III is a 1911 film adaptation of the Shakespeare play, became the oldest surviving American feature-length film when, in 1996, a former projectionist found and donated an intact copy to the AFI. The film was thought lost since the 1920s

    Women in China with small feet were deemed beautiful. China’s foot-binding custom lasted over 1,000 years but was banned in 1911.

    Pittsburgh was officially changed to “Pittsburg” from 1891-1911.

    A series of books were published featuring a fictional boy inventor named Tom Swift. One of these books was 1911’s Tom Swift and His Electric Rifle. Many years later, this indirectly led to naming the TASER that police now carry – “Tom A. Swift Electric Rifle.”

    Parks Canada was established on May 19, 1911, as the Dominion Parks Branch under the Department of the Interior, becoming the world’s first national park service.

    The US House of Representatives has had 435 seats since 1911, when the population of the United States was 94 million. Today, the population is over 325 million.

    Francis H. Holton filed a patent (#1000000) for a tubeless vehicle tire.

    In 1911/1912, the United States endured one of the coldest winters on record. Niagra Falls was frozen solid enough for people to cross.

    California was initially called The Grizzly Bear State. The bear on the California flag is modeled after “Monarch,” a Grizzly Bear that was held in captivity in California until he died in 1911.

    The fastest temperature drop in recorded history occurred in South Dakota in 1911. The temperature fell by 49°F in 15 minutes.

    Hugo Gernsback’s novel Ralph 124C 41+ successfully predicted the invention of television, videophones, airlines, solar energy in practical use, sound films, synthetic foods, artificial cloth, tape recorders, and spaceflight. It contained the first accurate description of radar.

    On March 25, 1911, the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory in New York City burned, and 145 (mostly young girls) died. Doors were locked to prevent theft.

    The Odd News

    A colony of Adélie penguins was discovered to have homosexual and necrophilic behaviors by explorer George Murray Levick. It was at the time considered too indecent for publication. The findings were finally published in 2012.

    Paul Geidel served the longest prison sentence in history: 68 years, 245 days, from 1911-1980, for the second-degree murder of a 73-year-old man when he was 17. He was granted parole after 63 years but voluntarily chose to serve the remainder of his sentence.

    The first movie to show an actor’s penis on screen was the 1911 Italian film Dante’s Inferno.

    In 1976, the mummified body of Elmer Mccurdy was found in a funhouse in California. McCurdy had died in a shootout in 1911, and his body had been used ever since as a sideshow attraction. His discoverers only realized it was a human body when his arm broke off, revealing bone and muscle.

    United States v. Forty Barrels and Twenty Kegs of Coca-Cola was a 1911 federal court case in which religious fundamentalists argued that caffeine was causing sexual transgression.

    Nobel Prize Winners

    Physics – Wilhelm Wien
    Chemistry – Marie Sklodowska-Curie
    Medicine – Allvar Gullstrand
    Literature – Count Maurice Polidore Marie Bernhard Maeterlinck
    Peace – Tobias Asser Alfred Hermann Fried

    Popular and Best-selling Books From 1911

    Fiction Bestsellers

    1. The Broad Highway, by Jeffrey Farnol
    2. The Prodigal Judge by Vaughan Kester
    3. The Winning of Barbara Worth by Harold Bell Wright
    4. Queed by Henry Sydnor Harrison
    5. The Harvester by Gene Stratton Porter
    6. The Iron Woman by Margaret Deland
    7. The Long Roll by Mary Johnston
    8. Molly Make-Believe by Eleanor Abbott
    9. The Rosary by Florence Barclay
    10. The Common Law by Robert W. Chambers

    Other Books of Note

    Principles of Scientific Management by F.W. Taylor
    The Mind of Primitive Man by Franz Boas
    Zuleika Dobson by Max Beerbohm

    Sports

    World Series Champions: Philadelphia Athletics
    Challenge Cup Champs: Ottawa Hockey Club
    U.S. Open Golf: John McDermott
    U.S. Tennis (Men/Ladies): William Larned/Hazel Hotchkiss Wightman
    Wimbledon (Men/Women): Laurence Doherty/Dorothea Lambert Chambers
    NCAA Football Champions: Princeton & Penn State
    Kentucky Derby Winner: Meridian
    Boston Marathon Winner: Clarence DeMar Time: 2:21:39

    More 1911 Facts & History Resources:

    Most Popular Baby Names (BabyCenter.com)
    Popular and Notable Books (popculture.us) 
    Broadway Shows that Opened in 1911
    1911 Calendar, courtesy of Time and Date.com 
    Fact Monster
    1911 in Movies (according to IMDB) 
    Wikipedia 1911

     

  • 1910 Trivia, History and Fun Facts

    1910 Trivia, History and Fun Facts

    1910 History, Fun Facts and Trivia

    • World-Changing Events: The Albanian Revolt of 1910 and The Mexican Revolution
    • The Popular Songs Included: By The Light of the Silvery Moon, Let Me Call You Sweetheart, and I’m Henery the Eighth, I Am.
    • The Republic of China officially abolished slavery.
    • The first film versions of The Wizard of Oz and Frankenstein were released.
    • President Taft began the tradition of throwing out balls on MLB’s opening day.
    • On April 20, Comet Halley was visible from Earth. On May 18, The Earth passed through the tail of Halley’s Comet.
    • Washington State became the 5th US State in which women could vote.
    • American domestic tourism began with the establishment of Glacier National Park in Montana.
    • In the first “Fight of the Century”, African-American boxer Jack Johnson defeated white-American boxer, James J. Jeffries.
    • The Conversation: It was about Halley’s Comet.

    Top Ten Baby Names of 1910

    Mary, Helen, Margaret, Dorothy, Ruth, Anna, Elizabeth, Mildred, Marie, Alice
    John, James, William, Robert, George, Joseph, Charles, Frank, Edward, Henry

    US Life Expectancy

     (1910) Males: 48.4 years, Females: 51.8 years
    Federal spending: $690 million
    Unemployment: 5.9%
    Cost of a first-class stamp: $0.02

    Firsts, Inventions, and Wonders

    Principia Mathematica, a three-volume work on the foundations of Mathematics, was released. This hefty work aimed to create a set of axioms that could, in theory, prove all mathematical truths. This included proving that 1+1=2.

    Thomas Edison’s Frankenstein (1910) is the earliest known film version of Mary Shelley’s novel.

    The word “Moron” was first coined in 1910 by psychologist Henry H. Goddard from the Ancient Greek word ‘moros,’ meaning “dull.”

    William D. Boyce founded the Boy Scouts of America.

    The first mid-air collision. On October 3, Frenchman René Thomas, flying the Antoinette IV monoplane, collided with British Army Captain Bertram Dickson in his Farman III biplane. No one was killed.

    The first public radio broadcast was live performances of the Cavalleria Rusticana and Pagliacci operas from the Metropolitan Opera House in New York.

    The first airship with passengers set afloat-Zeppelin on June 22, on The Deutschland.

    Georges Claude invented Neon Lights, first publicly displayed at the Paris Motor (Auto) Show.

    The Tango dance, a cultural blend of Cuban, Argentinian, and African rhythms, became famous worldwide.

    President William Howard Taft began the tradition of throwing out balls on MLB’s opening day.

    “ALFA” (later Alfa Romeo) was an acronym for “Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili,” founded in 1910.

    Yellow Cab was founded

    The Most Popular Singers and Artists of 1910 include

    The American Quartet, Harry Anthony, Norah Bayes, Henry Burr, Arthur Clough, Arthur Collins, Ada Jones, Byron G. Harlan, The Hayden Quartet, Harry Lauder, Harry Macdonough, Lucy Isabelle Marsh, John McCormack, Eddie Morton, Billy Murray, Jack Norworth, Will Oakland, The Peerless Quartet, Arthur Pryor’s Band, Bob Roberts, Frank Stanley, Elise Stevenson, Sophie Tucker, Walter Van Brunt, Elizabeth Wheeler, Bert Williams

    Pop Culture Facts & History

    When Earth passed through the tail of Halley’s Comet during its 1910 approach, there was public fear that a gas discovered in the tail, cyanogen, would destroy all life on the planet, leading to people buying gas masks and “Anti-Comet Pills,” which were $1 each.

    The Great January Comet of 1910, often called the Daylight Comet, appeared in January. It was brighter than Halley’s and unexpected.

    Typhoid Mary (Mary Mallon) was released from her first periods of forced isolation and went on to cause several further outbreaks of typhoid in the New York area.

    “Lakeview Gusher” was the name given to an out-of-control oil eruption from a drilled well in Kern County, California. It created the largest accidental oil spill in history, spewing for 544 consecutive days, and releasing 9 million barrels of crude oil.

    During three days of shooting in December 1910, Adolf Toepperwein shot 72,491 out of 75,000 tossed wooden blocks.

    In one hour, 10,000 people in Iowa constructed a 380-mile road in 1910.

    The first movie ever shot in Hollywood was “In Old California” by DW Griffith in 1910. It was a historical melodrama about southern California in the 1800s when it was a part of Mexico.

    The first film version of The Wizard of Oz was released in 1910

    Alice Stebbins Wells was sworn in as the first policewoman in the United States by the Los Angeles Police Department.

    The world record holder for the world’s oldest dog was Bluey, who lived from 1910 to 1939 and died at 29 years and five months.

    In France, Raymonde de Laroche was awarded Pilot’s License #36 by the Federation Aeronautique Internationale, becoming the first woman authorized to fly an airplane.

    Rayon, a man-made fabric blended from cotton, wood pulp, and other natural or synthetic fibers, was first commercially produced in America in Marcus Hook, Pennsylvania.

    While attending the first American Air Meet, William Boeing asked every aviator for a ride, but no one obliged. William then went back to Seattle and founded Boeing Aircraft.

    The Tragedies

    One hundred eighteen people died when three passenger trains were buried at Steven’s Pass, Washington, in the Cascade Range by the worst snow slide in US history.

    On March 27, a Fire during a barn dance in Hungary killed 312 people.

    In England, near Bolton, an explosion killed 360 coal miners: The Pretoria Pit Disaster.

    A fire at a building in Newark, New Jersey, housing several factories, killed 24 women and girls employed by the Wolf Muslin Undergarment Company.

    The Great Fire of 1910 (aka Idaho Big Burn or The Big Blowup) in the western US was the size of the state of Connecticut. It spanned from eastern Washington to western Montana, and 3 million acres were burned. Eighty-seven people were killed.

    In England, an explosion at the Wellington Coal Mine near Manchester killed 137 people.

    Interesting…

    Valentine Tapley promised never to shave again if Abraham Lincoln was elected president. He died in 1910 with a 12-foot 6-inch long beard.

    The Great Illusion by Norman Angell, a best-selling British book published in 1910, claimed future major wars were unlikely because they would unprofitably disrupt commerce and credit between nations.

    The Population of Manhattan peaked in 1910, at 2,331,542. It is lower today.

    Nobel Prize Winners

    Chemistry – Otto Wallach
    Literature – Paul Heyse
    Medicine – Albrecht Kossel
    Peace – Permanent International Peace Bureau
    Physics – Johannes Diderik van der Waals

    Popular and Best-selling Books From 1910

    Fiction Bestsellers: 

    1. The Rosary by Florence Barclay
    2. A Modern Chronicle by Winston Churchill,
    3. The Wild Olive by Basil King
    4. Max by Katherine Cecil Thurston
    5. The Kingdom of Slender Swords by Hallie Erminie Rives
    6. Simon the Jester by William J. Locke
    7. Lord Loveland Discovers America by C.N. and A.M. Williamson
    8. The Window at the White Cat by Mary Roberts Rinehart
    9. Molly Make-Believe by Eleanor Abbott
    10. When a Man Marries by Mary Roberts Rinehart

    Other Books of Note:

    Twenty Years at Hull-House by Jane Addams
    Origins and Development of Psychoanalysis by Sigmund Freud
    Howards End by E.M. Forster
    How We Think by John Dewey

    1910 United States Census

    Total US Population: 92,228,496
    1. New York, New York – 4,766,883
    2. Chicago, Illinois – 2,185,283
    3. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – 1,549,008
    4. St. Louis, Missouri – 687,029
    5. Boston, Massachusetts – 670,585
    6. Cleveland, Ohio – 560,663
    7. Baltimore, Maryland – 558,485
    8. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania – 533,905
    9. Detroit, Michigan – 465,766
    10. Buffalo, New York – 423,715

    Sports

    World Series Champions: Philadelphia Athletics
    Challenge Cup Champs: Ottawa Hockey Club/Montreal Wanderers
    U.S. Open Golf: Alex Smith
    U.S. Tennis (Men/Ladies): William Larned/Hazel Hotchkiss Wightman
    Wimbledon (Men/Women): Anthony Wilding/Dorothea Lambert Chambers
    NCAA Football Champions: Harvard & Pitt
    Kentucky Derby Winner: Donau
    Boston Marathon Winner: Fred Cameron Time: 2:28:52

    More 1910 Facts & History Resources:

    Most Popular Baby Names (BabyCenter.com)
    Popular and Notable Books (popculture.us) 
    Broadway Shows that Opened in 1910
    1910 Calendar, courtesy of Time and Date.com 
    1910US Census Fast Facts
    Fact Monster 
    1910 in Movies (according to IMDB) 
    Wikipedia 1910