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In a March 1944 speech to the Royal College of Physicians, Winston Churchill paid tribute to Britain's doctors and linked the nation's destiny to the health of its citizens. In making these observations, Churchill further noted that "The longer you can look back [into history], the farther you can look forward [into the future]." Four years later, Britain instituted universal health insurance through the creation of the National Health Service.

With these Churchillian connections to health, history and our collective future, let's "look back" a hundred years to the rollicking 1920s. Let's search for insights into how life and healthcare will unfold throughout the 2020s.

Today, for the first time in history, human beings must adapt to a rate of change beyond our natural capabilities. Weaving digital technologies into the fabric of daily life to ease adaptation, reduce stress and promote well-being is the challenge of our times. Big challenges require big solutions.

America in the 1920s was a place of big ideas, boundless energy, big personalities and big dreams. There were huge winners and losers. By the decade's end, it was hard to recognize or even remember the decade's humble origins. 1920s America has much to teach 2020s Americans about adapting to fast-paced and sometimes chaotic change.

Then and Now

The 1920s began in the immediate aftermath of World War I and the nation's worst-ever pandemic. The 1918-19 pandemic killed 625,000 Americans and as many as 50 million people worldwide. Weary of global war and disease, America entered the 1920s with a profound sense of loss and deep uncertainty regarding its future.

Long roiling beneath a sunny facade, America's contradictions, conflicts and restlessness burst forth and found expression. Efforts to resolve these tensions triggered a titanic wave of creativity, innovation, social conflict, dazzling technological advances and status-quo-busting dynamism.

The 1920s also became the decade when American medical education, research and clinical care standardized, professionalized and modernized. Breakthrough discoveries expanded medicine's healing powers.

Not surprisingly, this exuberant, freewheeling and tumultuous decade earned its own nickname, the Roaring 20s. Its byproducts launched America into the modern era. For better or worse, there was no turning back.

A century later, the U.S. is emerging from the grip of another massive pandemic. Living under COVID-19 has fundamentally changed the way people live, work and play. Virtual technologies have made remote connectivity easier and better.

During the 2020 pandemic, long-simmering tensions have exploded into the public arena. High-voltage rhetoric has politicized the national discourse on vital policy concerns. The center is not holding. Restless Americans confront an uncertain future. There is a desperate need for creative solutions.

Like the 1920s, there's no going back to our pre-pandemic existence even though the path forward is unclear. Nowhere is this truer than in medicine and healthcare. Reconciling the industry's inherent contractions is putting enormous pressure on incumbent business practices even as it creates opportunities for new business models that create value and promote health.

Mining the post-pandemic 1920s for insights deepens our understanding of the technological, economic and cultural forces reshaping America today as we emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic. It also provides a useful context for assessing how efforts to transform healthcare's calcified and counterproductive status quo will proceed.

All That Jazz

It took some time for 1920s America to recover from the twin cataclysms of war and pandemic disease. Once it did, the nation roared forward. America shifted from an agrarian to a manufacturing society, immigration transformed cities, women got the vote, organized crime flourished, and rising secularism triggered a fundamentalist response.

A booming economy propelled the nation into this high-flying new era. Novel forms of travel (airplanes), communication (radio), entertainment (cinema), design (art deco) and convenience (electrification, consumer goods) emerged. The old ways of doing things disappeared.

Cultural turmoil stimulated remarkable artistic expression in literature (Ernest Hemingway), painting (Pablo Picasso), theater (Eugene O'Neill) and movies (Marlena Dietrich). Babe Ruth, Charles Lindbergh, Charlie Chaplin and Gloria Swanson became cultural icons. Freud pioneered psychoanalysis. Physics embraced quantum mechanics. "Flappers" revolutionized fashion while drinking, smoking, dancing, voting and moving into the workplace.

In 1925, President Calvin Coolidge emphasized that "the business of America is business." So it was. Ford, Westinghouse, Sears and General Electric became household names. Cars were everywhere. Route 66 became the nation's first transcontinental highway. Skyscrapers stretched upward. The stock market soared. Progressive social reforms, including universal education and the 40-hour work week, empowered a growing middle class.

The 1920s signature creation was Jazz music. With African and ragtime roots, jazz epitomized and defined the Roaring 20s: its liberating freedoms, cultural tensions, complex rhythms and joi de vive. Jazz originated in New Orleans, spread north with the Great Black migration and triggered the "Harlem Renaissance." Legendary performers, including Louis Armstrong, Bessie Smith, Cab Calloway and Josephine Baker, spread jazz fever throughout the land.

Jazz captured the Roaring 20s vigor and laissez-faire spirit. Its few simple rules unleash individual creativity within a group/ensemble dynamic. Jazz is simultaneously simple and complex. Its controlled chaos incorporates conflicting musical styles that build toward harmonious resolutions. It is the perfect metaphor for that turbulent, transitional era.

Jazz is also a perfect metaphor for America's current turbulent, transitional period. Before returning to current day America, let's examine how medicine came of age during the 1920s.

Medicine's Golden Era

By the early 1900s, the United States had only a few elite medical enterprises that incorporated rigorous training, scientific research and clinical consistency into their operations. The most notable was the then-new Johns Hopkins School of Medicine (founded in 1893).

In contrast, most medical organizations were squalid, unregulated, clinically inadequate and staffed by quacks. With the support of the American Medical Association, the Carnegie Foundation engaged Abraham Flexner in 1908 to survey medical education in the U.S. and Canada. Flexner published his findings in 1910.

The Flexner Report revolutionized American medicine. It called for rigorous admission criteria, adherence to scientific protocols and state regulation of medical organizations. Few medical schools met Flexner's standards. He recommended closing more than 120 of the 150-plus medical schools then operating in the country.

Response to the Flexner Report was rapid and profound. Within four years, 31 states refused to license graduates from substandard medical schools. Within 10 years, almost a hundred medical schools closed or merged. Despite a fast-growing population, the number of U.S. medical students dropped from 28,000 in 1904 to just 14,000 in 1920.

The Flexner Report also promoted the Johns Hopkins training model of medical education: two years of science education and two years of clinical training, followed by extensive residencies at teaching hospitals. Medical schools universally adopted the Hopkins model and operated within a tripartite mission (education, research and clinical practice) that emphasized the power of science and the necessity of academic freedom.

The broad adoption of the Hopkins model during the 1920s transformed American medicine. The decade witnessed breakthrough discoveries (penicillin, insulin, vitamins), dramatically reduced communicable diseases, advancing diagnostics and the dramatic expansion of public health departments. By the close of the decade, America had become the global leader in medical research and clinical care.

The tripartite academic model promulgated during the 1920s remains largely intact today. It's showing its age. Despite a century's worth of medical advances, the American healthcare system was unprepared and ill-equipped to address the COVID-19 pandemic.

COVID-19 exposed weaknesses in healthcare's supply chain, the inadequacy of the nation's public health infrastructure, the health risks of unchecked chronic disease and profound disparities in
access to healthcare services. The result was needless death and suffering.

COVID-19 Comes Calling

The COVID-19 pandemic brought America to a standstill. Addressing this viral threat challenged long-established cultural norms, raised fundamental questions regarding societal equity and justice, fed political and social polarization even as new technologies fundamentally redefined work, entertainment and human connection.

A Harvard Business School survey found that over 80% of Americans don't want to go back to the office full-time. They want less commuting and more flexible schedules. They love having the ability to change workplace locations with ease.

Working remotely creates the potential for greater social isolation but it also provides more opportunities for meaningful connections. It places greater importance on outcomes and less emphasis on process mechanics and maintaining appearances. "Busy work" disappears.

Like the 1920s, America confronts an uncertain future with changing organizational dynamics, awe-inspiring technologies and cultural turmoil. Jazz remains very popular. Its ability to honor both individuals and groups while resolving discordant elements is as relevant today as it was in the Roaring 20s.

In this sense, Jazz informs the personnel strategies companies are adopting to remain competitive as disruptive forces transform industries from the ground up. The most import lesson for the 2020s is that people are more important than ever. The challenge is giving individuals the skills and tools necessary to be high-performing professionals over long careers. Here's how.

Embrace machine-human collaboration: eliminate routine tasks; enhance human capabilities.

Inspire, don't manage employees.

Give employees agency to work on their terms toward mutually determined outcomes.

Enable, don't fight, work-life integration.

Explore creative work solutions (e.g., shift swapping) to achieve superior performance outcomes.

Emphasize well-being; encourage empathy and gratitude.

Support risk-taking.

Like jazz aficionados, highly skilled professionals are solo performers within highly attuned ensembles/teams. Passion drives their performances. Taking calculated risks supports professional growth. Resilience requires the ability to learn from and bounce back from failure.

Command and control management models no longer work. Today's professionals require work environments that enable them to manage their daily activities in ways that optimize both professional and personal outcomes. Genius loves company. Harmonious "resolutions" propel high-performing professionals to achieve greatness.

Healthcare at the COVID-19 Crossroads

Frontline healthcare professionals have battled COVID-19 for more than a year. Their heroism and selflessness have inspired the nation. Unfortunately, they often labored with inadequate resources and suffer from high stress/burnout levels. Going forward, health companies must take better care of their workers and give them more tools to manage their own health as well as the health of their patients.

The elimination of elective surgeries in March 2020 and relaxed regulatory barriers accelerated the adoption of digital and virtual technologies. Almost all medical visits moved to telemedicine platforms. In the process, the healthcare industry pivoted to become more decentralized, consumer-oriented and cost-effective. Hospital-at-home care proliferated.

Concurrently, breakthroughs in vaccine development and genomic underpinnings of health suggest medicine is on the precipice of systematic improvements in diagnoses, treatments and personalized wellness. Several virtual care, augmented intelligence, care management and consumer health companies gained marketshare and market clout. Some became unicorns with valuations great than $1 billion.

Despite these near-term advances, healthcare still largely operates in the same ways it did during the 1920s with hospital-centric care delivery, fee-for-service payment and fragmented service provision. Where does it go from here? There is a natural desire among many incumbents to return to pre-pandemic business practices.

Pursuing that strategic approach is highly risky. It assumes that American society will continue to pay premium prices for healthcare services that deliver sub-optimal outcomes and do little to prevent the spread of chronic disease. Changing consumer expectations, new competitors, value-based payment models and pro-market regulatory reforms place enormous economic pressure on status quo business models.

Relative to other industries, healthcare has been slower to adapt the disruptive digital technologies that reshape supply-demand dynamics by empowering consumers. Accordingly, healthcare incumbents can expect to experience disruptive change at an accelerated pace during the coming decade.

This digital imperative poses a massive challenge for health companies. Big challenges require big solutions. Successful healthcare leaders will position their organizations for both the post-COVID work environment and a post-COVID healthcare marketplace that rewards value-based, consumer-friendly service delivery.

Conclusion: Healthcare's Roaring 2020s

Healthcare isn't working. It's too expensive, fragmented and ineffective. It isn't addressing the nation's most compelling healthcare challenge, the exploding levels of chronic disease that are reducing lifespan, life quality and national productivity. The American people need and deserve better. They want better care options, more transparency, greater convenience and lower costs.

New business models are emerging to challenge status-quo practices and give consumers what they need, want and desire. 1920s-like turbulence will eliminate many legacy businesses. Companies that promote well-being through high value service provision will become market leaders. 2030 Healthcare will bear little resemblance to 2020 Healthcare.

Everchanging, Jazz remains very popular. Its inherent conflicts resolve themselves in new and often surprising ways. In this sense, Jazz offers healthcare a formula for resolving its inherent conflicts by blending individual and team performance to create beautiful music.

This is an exciting and perilous time for healthcare professionals. Properly inspired, healthcare's people will lead industry transformation through the Roaring 2020s.

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The Roaring '20s Then & Now: Insights on Healthcare's Post-Pandemic Future - 4sight Health

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This is an exciting and perilous time for healthcare professionals. Let's search for insights into how life and healthcare will unfold throughout the 2020s.

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The roaring 20's... what a time it must have been to be alive! America was prospering, new cities were being born, Babe Ruth was hitting home runs and a new era of mass consumption was upon us. There were many notable inventions in the 1920s, many of which shaped our society and left a lasting impact. Here is a short list of products that were invented in the 1920s that are still being used a century later.

Sunglasses

Sunglasses! My favorite product on this list. Could you imagine a world without your shades. Sam Foster couldn't, when in 1929 his company Foster Grant based in Atlantic City put sunglasses into mass production. He sold his first fair of Foster Grant sunglasses on the boardwalk in Atlantic City, NJ in 1929. Will these ever become obsolete?! Maybe with contact lense shades, but would that really be practical?! If any of us make it to 2120, I wouldn't be surprised to see these still on the list.

Instand Camera

I'm sure we all have an embarrassing polaroid picture somewhere from our childhood or maybe a funny collage from a photo booth on our fridge from an event or party we attended. Thats all thanks to Samuel Shlafrock, who invented the first instant camera in 1923. This has adapted significantly over the last century, and the instant camera didn't go into public consumption until the 1940's, but it all started in 20's. Fujufilm and Polaroid rule the market today, and both have some pretty cool products available which have made a comeback.

Water Skis

The ingenuity of Ralph Samuelson in 1922, to pursue his dream of skiing on water, led him to create the first pair of Water Ski's. It started with a clothes line and some wood boards. Now, it is one of the most popular sports on the water. Did you know Water Skiing was featured one time in the 1972 Olympics?!

Band Aid

A loving husband at Johnson & Johnson created the first band aid in 1920. Earle Dicksons wife kept cutting and burning herself at home while cooking. He started with a prototype which helped address her wounds. Later he introduced it to his employer who went on to mass produce it and create the name Band-Aid. I hope Earle received a royalty for his idea.

The Pop-Up Toaster

In 1921, another Minnesota native, received his patent for the automatic pop up toaster, which he created for his restaurants. Others created products which cooked bread to make toast, but his invention is what become main stream and ended up in most homes by the end of the decade. It was also the first to pop up the toast after completion. Did you know the bread slicer was another invention of the 1920s?!

Ice Cube Tray

It is a little unclear to me when the Ice Cube Tray was made. When I first started my research, some say the late 1800s, others say 1909, while other articles cite Llyod Grof Copeman as the inventor of the household version of the cube tray. Soon after his version of the invention, it became popular nationwide. It was in the 1920s, the use of ice cubes in drinks, created the popular expression, "on the rocks".

Some other notable inventions in the 1920s which are still being used today include; The Traffic Light, The Hair Blower, Electric Razors, Frozen Food, Penicillin, Convertible Cars and lastly the Cheese Burger!

Thank you for reading! If you learned anything new, or found this article interesting, please share :-)

About the author: Joseph Sommer founded Whitestone Branding in January 2013. It's his belief that its Whitestone's job to help make our customers look good and make there brands shine. We work with companies and agencies to help them source the RIGHT branded products for their events and companies. Joseph built his business plans in college in promotional products and has been in the industry since he was 19 years old. A branded products expert, Joseph and his team are eager and willing to help you with your next event and campaign.

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Products invented in the 1920s that are still being used a century later

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In the realm of innovation and technology, the 1920s was a period brimming with breakthroughs and revolutionary creations. As we traverse through the 2020s, it's fascinating to reflect on the inventions that are marking their 100th anniversary this decade and have fundamentally altered the course of human life. In this piece, I walk us you through the captivating journey of some of these inventions, highlighting their transformative impacts.

1. The Lie Detector (1921)

John A. Larson, a police officer in Berkeley, California, invented the first lie detector or polygraph in 1921. The polygraph measured physiological responses, such as heart rate and blood pressure, to determine if a person was being truthful or deceptive. Though its reliability and ethical use are still debated today, it's been a staple in criminal investigations and has had a profound impact on the legal system.

2. Insulin (1922)

The discovery of insulin by Sir Frederick Banting and Charles Best in 1922 was a landmark breakthrough in the treatment of diabetes. Prior to insulin, a diagnosis of diabetes was a death sentence. The introduction of insulin therapy has since saved millions of lives and continues to be a fundamental treatment for managing diabetes.

3. Traffic Signal (1923)

Garrett Morgan, an African-American inventor, designed the three-position traffic signal in 1923. This invention played a pivotal role in regulating vehicular and pedestrian traffic, significantly reducing accidents and fostering order and safety on the roads.

4. Frozen Food Process (1924)

The advent of the frozen food process by Clarence Birdseye in 1924 transformed the food industry and our eating habits. Birdseye's invention allowed for the preservation of food without compromising its taste and nutritional value, making seasonal food available year-round and revolutionizing the food supply chain.

5. Television (1927)

In 1927, Philo Farnsworth invented the first fully functional all-electronic image pickup device (video camera tube) and the fully functional and complete all-electronic television system. Television has since become a cornerstone of entertainment, information, and global culture, with its evolution bringing forth color TV, digital TV, and smart TVs, reshaping the way we perceive and interact with the world.

6. Penicillin (1928)

Though discovered by Alexander Fleming in 1928, it wasn't until the 1940s that penicillin was developed as a pharmaceutical. This accidental discovery marked the commencement of the antibiotic era, transforming medicine and enabling the effective treatment of bacterial infections, saving countless lives over the past century.

7. Sliced Bread (1928)

Otto Frederick Rohwedder invented the first bread-slicing machine, and the first loaf of sliced bread was sold in 1928. This invention led to the popular phrase "the best thing since sliced bread," symbolizing a benchmark of practical innovation. Sliced bread introduced convenience and uniformity to households, affecting baking and eating habits worldwide.

These inventions of the 1920s have left an indelible mark on our lives, shaping societal norms, individual behaviors, and global industries. They underscore the boundless possibilities of human ingenuity and the profound impacts that seemingly simple innovations can have on our world.

The journey from inception to the realization of these inventions is marked by the tireless efforts, relentless pursuit of knowledge, and unwavering belief of the inventors in the potential of their creations. As a Product Manager, understanding the rich tapestry of these inventions provides invaluable insights into the relentless pursuit of innovation and the transformational power of well-executed ideas.

In contemplating these monumental inventions, we find a wellspring of inspiration, driving us to imagine, create, and, possibly, redefine the future. The 1920s teach us that every decade holds the promise of transformative inventions that can reshape the contours of human existence, and the 2020s are no different. Our journey of innovation continues, with the hope that our creations will leave as lasting an impact as those that have come before us.

Attribution and Inspiration
Image by Freepik
Seven Inventions from the 1920s That We Still Use Today, By Amie Tennant, Family Search, June 12, 2020

Inventions That Shook the World: 1920s, DCMP, 2009

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Celebrating a Century: Iconic Inventions of the 1920s

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In the realm of innovation and technology, the 1920s was a period brimming with breakthroughs and revolutionary creations. As we traverse through the 2020s, it's fascinating to reflect on the...

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As the 1920s came roaring in, the United States was experiencing a time of economic prosperity. With that prosperity came a desire for convenience and more leisure time. For this reason, many inventions in the 1920s are related to entertainment and making domestic life easier. These inventions not only drastically shaped the 1920s but shaped the world as we know it today.

Check out these seven 1920s inventions that are still used today.

1. The Electric Automatic Traffic Signal

Garret Morgan is credited with inventing the first electric automatic traffic signal in 1923. Although other types of traffic signals were in use since 1868, Morgan's design used a T-shaped pole and had three positions. The patented design was sold to General Electric for $40,000.

According to the United States Access Board, the United States had roughly 300,000 traffic lights in 2018. Just imagine how many are in use across the whole world!

2. Quick-Frozen Food

Can you imagine not having a pack of frozen peas in the freezer just when you need it? Or how about a frozen pizza for when a craving hits? Well, frozen veggies and food as we know them today haven't always been a staple in every home! Clarence Birdseye invented and offered Americans the first quick-frozen foods in the 1920s after noticing how good a fish kept if it was frozen quickly rather than slowly.

3. The Band-Aid®

Earle Dickson, a Johnson and Johnson employee, created the first adhesive bandage for small wounds in 1920. Dickson invented the special bandage for his wife, Josephine, who seemed to cut and burn herself regularly while cooking. Now, she could easily dress a wound herself.

Johnson and Johnson mass produced machine-made Band-Aids® in 1924. Over time, these bandages have evolved to be made in a variety of shapes and sizes and in various materials. Some have added medication, and they can be a favorite decorative "sticker" to many children around the world!

Over 100 billion Band-Aids® have been made.

4. Water Skis

In 1922, Ralph Samuelson created a new sport-water skiing! It quickly became a favorite summer pastime. Samuelson first used a pair of boards as skis and a clothesline as a towrope. He tried his idea on Lake Pepin in Lake City, Minnesota, where his brother pulled him in a boat that reached 20 mph. It took him a bit of time to perfect the best position for skimming the water, but once he did, he never looked back!

Samuelson spent the next 15 years performing water skiing shows and teaching other people the skill.

5. Electric Blender

Are you a fan of milk shakes? The first electric blender made its appearance in 1922.

Stephen J. Poplawski is credited for the electric blender that was first used for making milk shakes and malts. In 1932, Poplawski received patents for a blender that worked well for fruits and vegetables.

The electric blender made cool creamy treats and pureed fruits and veggies easily. It quickly became a popular kitchen appliance in most homes.

6. Television

Oh, what would we do without the greatest pastime in this day and age-and yes, I'm talking about binge-watching the television. Inventors Philo Taylor Farnsworth, John Logie Baird, and Charles Francis Jenkins are credited with the idea and creation of televisions as we know them today.

Before electronic television, there was mechanical television. The world's first electronic television is credited to Philo Taylor Farnsworth in 1927. Though other mechanical television inventors such as John Logie Baird and Charles Francis Jenkins had successes in television technology, Farnsworth's invention is considered the direct ancestor of our modern electronic television.

Some estimates say there are as many as 120.6 million TVs in homes across America today!

7. Vacuum Cleaner

Though the first vacuum cleaner can be traced back to about 1860, it was in the mid-1920s that the vacuum became much more efficient and easier to use. In fact, in 1920 Air-Way Sanitizer of Toledo, Ohio, introduced a vacuum cleaner with a disposable bag. In 1926, the popular vacuum company Hoover developed a positive agitation system that greatly increased dirt removal efficiency. Cleaning household carpets became a lot easier and much faster.

Today, vacuum cleaners come in all sorts of varieties such as cordless, upright, central, wet and dry, and even robotic! What do you think was your grandmother's favorite 1920s invention? You can learn more about your ancestors in the 1920s by finding them in the 1930 United States census records. Find them now!

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Seven Inventions from the 1920s That We Still Use Today * FamilySearch

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As the 1920s came roaring in, the United States was experiencing a time of economic prosperity. With that prosperity came a desire for convenience and more leisure time. For this reason, many inventions in the 1920s are related to entertainment and making domestic life easier.

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Sports in the 1920s (from Tar Heel Junior Historian) | NCpedia

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By Jim Sumner
Reprinted with permission from the Tar Heel Junior Historian. Spring 2004.
Tar Heel Junior Historian Association, NC Museum of History

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Thorpe, Jim and Babe Ruth (from Tar Heel Junior Historian) | NCpedia

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by Jim L. Sumner
Reprinted with permission from the Tar Heel Junior Historian, Spring 2000.
Tar Heel Junior Historian Association, NC Museum of History

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American Sports in the 1920s for kids: Pictures of Famous Sports Stars
The photographs and pictures of the famous stars of sports in the 1920s are a useful addition to the facts sheet. The names of the famous sports stars are Gene Tunney, Babe Ruth, Satchel Paige, Jack Dempsey, Johnny Weissmuller and Joe Lewis.

Gene Tunney

Babe Ruth

Satchel Paige

Jack Dempsey

Johnny Weissmuller

Joe Lewis

Facts about Sports in the 1920s for kids The following fact sheet contains interesting facts and information about Sports in the 1920's for kids.

Facts about Sports in the 1920s for kids

Sports in the 1920s Fact 4: College Sports for Men: The vast majority of College students in the 1920's were men and its history dated back to 1859. The first Sporting favorites at college included baseball and football but the range soon extended to include athletics, gymnastics and basketball. Spectators and gate receipts became a regular part of college games..

Sports in the 1920s Fact 8: Spectator Sports and Stadiums: Spectator sports such as basketball, baseball and boxing reached new heights of popularity in the 1920s and massive stadiums were built in cities to cater for the increasing interest of people who wanted to watch and enjoy the excitement of spectator sports.

Sports in the 1920s Fact 9: Madison Square Garden: Madison Square Garden was originally an indoor arena as a theater, for concerts and also housed a restaurant. Madison Square Garden was rebuilt in 1925 in order to hold popular sporting events such as boxing, basketball and ice hockey. Madison Square Garden rebuilt in 249 days at the cost of $4.75 million by boxing promoter Tex Rickard.

Sports in the 1920s Fact 10: The Yankee Stadium: The Yankee Stadium, located in the Bronx, in New York City was built in 1927 as a ballpark for baseball. The Yankee Stadium was built from 1922 - 1923 for $2.4 million ($32 million equivalent today). Yankee Stadium officially opened on Wednesday, April 18, 1923, with the Yankees' first home game, against the Boston Red Sox. It was given the nickname, "The House That Ruth Built" in reference to Babe Ruth, the legendary baseball superstar whose popularity coincided with the opening of the stadium and the winning successes of the Yankees.

Sports in the 1920s Fact 12: National Air Races: The National Air Races, also known as Pulitzer Trophy Races, began in 1920 when publisher Ralph Pulitzer sponsored an air race on Long Island, New York in an effort to promote aviation. Refer to Early US Aviation

Sports in the 1920s Fact 13: Baseball's World Series: Baseball's World Series was broadcast on radio for the first time in October 1921
and Americans listened to the thrilling radio commentary as the New York Giants defeated the New York Yankees.

Refer to Sports in the 1920s Fact 16: Discrimination and Prejudice: There was Discrimination and Prejudice in every aspect of the 1920's sporting arenas, just as in every other aspect of American society. Racial prejudice against African Americans were prevalent as was discrimination from the "New Immigrants" from South-western Europe such as Italy, Greece and Poland . The infamous Jim Crow Laws restricted whites and blacks from playing baseball, basketball and football together. Black boxers were even forbidden from sparring with white boxers. Old Immigrants vs New Immigrants and Jim Crow Laws for facts and info. The pride inspired by the Harlem Renaissance inspired African Americans to excel in the American sporting arena.

: Women had also been treated as 'second class citizens'. However times were changing in the 1920's. Women gained the right to vote in 1920 and the Roaring Twenties saw the emergence of Sports in the 1920s Fact 17: Women Flappers who challenged traditional ideas in social conventions and influenced women's fashion - including sporting attire for women.

knickerbockers and baggy trousers came into vogue enabling women to enjoy comfortable sports clothing for golf and and the new rage for bicycling. Famous fashion designer Jean Patou introduced styles suited to outdoor fashion and women's sportswear. He moved fashion towards the natural and comfortable clothes and became famous for his daring sleeveless and knee-length tennis dress that he designed for Suzanne Lenglen, the legendary French tennis champion. For more facts refer to Sports in the 1920s Fact 18: Fashion and Sportswear for Women: Women's fashion changed and short 1920's Fashion for Women.

Sports in the 1920s Fact 19: Fashion and Sportswear for Men: Sports and leisure influenced fashion and sportswear for men. New, casual attire like jumpers, jodhpurs, plus-fours and knickerbockers. College sporting stars inspired the widespread fashion of 'letterman sweaters'. For more facts refer to 1920s Men's Fashion.

Sports in the 1920s Fact 21: The Harlem Renaissance: The Harlem Renaissance was a period during the 1920s when African-American achievements in art, literature and music flourished. The Harlem Renaissance was important because it inspired an explosion of pride and was perceived as a new beginning for African Americans and led to many achievements by African American sports heroes..

Continued...

Facts about Sports in the 1920s for kids

Facts about Sports in the 1920s for kids The following fact sheet continues with facts about Sports in the 1920s for kids.

Facts about Sports in the 1920s for kids

Sports in the 1920s Fact 36: Jack Dempsey: Jack Dempsey was a famous boxer who held the title of world heavyweight champion
from 1919 until 1926, when he lost it to Gene Tunney. When Jack Dempsey attempted to win back the
title in 1927, the publicity and enthusiasm for the boxing rematch reached such a frenzy that just one store sold $90,000 worth of radios, a massive sum at that time, in the two weeks leading up to the rematch. 74 radio stations carried the Dempsey-Tunney bout to an audience of nearly 15 million listeners. Jack Dempsey was the first to earn $1,000,000 for one boxing match.

Facts about Sports in the 1920s for kids

American Sports in the 1920s Facts for kids: List of Famous American Sports Stars in the 1920s Many of the names of Famous American Sports stars are detailed on the following list.

List of Famous American Sports Stars in the 1920s

Gertrude Ederle ● Red Grange ● Gene Tunney ● Jack Dempsey ● Babe Ruth ● Bill Tilden ● Knute Rockne ● Betty Robinson ● Lou Gehrig ● Walter Hagen ● Bobby Jones ● Helen Wills ● Jesse Owens ● Henry McDonald ● Johnny Weissmuller ● Joe Lewis ● Oscar Charleston ● Satchel Paige ● Walter "Toots" Wright ● Al "Runt" Pullins

List of Famous American Sports Stars in the 1920s

Facts about Sports in the 1920s for kids
For visitors interested in the history of life in America during the 1920's refer to the following articles:

American Sports in the 1920s for kids
The article on American Sports in the 1920s provides detailed facts and a summary of the important events and people in the history of the United States - a crash course in American History. The following video will give you additional important facts, history and dates about the personal and political lives of all the US Presidents.

Sports in the 1920s

● Interesting Facts about Sports in the 1920s for kids and schools and sports stars
● The History of Sports in the 1920s in America for kids
● History of Sports in the 1920s and famous and sports stars
● List of names of famous Sports in the 1920s
● Fast, fun Facts about Sports in the 1920s and sports stars
● Sports in the 1920s and sporting heroes
● Fast, Fun Facts about the Sports in the 1920s and sports stars for schools, homework, kids and children

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Sports in the 1920s: Baseball, Boxing, Football Sports Stars ***

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Find a summary, definition and facts about the Sports in the 1920s for kids. Interesting facts about Sports in the 1920s, names of sports celebrities and events. Short facts about Sports in the 1920s for kids, children, homework and schools.

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The Roaring Twenties are famous for many things, one of the most often forgotten is 1920s sports.

"I have only one superstition, touch all the bases when I hit a home-run."

It was a new era of heroes and goats.

From the Black Sox scandal of 1919, the historic home runs records of Babe Ruth, player Red Grange and coach Knute Rockne's domination in football, Jack Dempsey's vicious knock-outs, and Man o'Wars brilliant races, the sports of the 1920s have become legendary to fans around the world. This was "The Golden Age" of sports in America.

Newspapers turned sports into an American pastime and gave relief to an American public searching for some relief after the atrocities of World War 1.

Sportswriters became the character delivering the news to a public that couldn't get enough.

Baseball "America's Pastime"

Babe Ruth owned 1920s sports. He was the hard drinking, hard swinging hero of the Yankees' "Murderer's Row".Along with Lou Gehrig, Ruth put together one of the most impressive baseball careers of all time.

And he did it in an era before television, steroids, free agency and million dollar contracts. This quote from W.O. McGeehan,

"Babe Ruth with his bat pounded baseball back into popularity [after the Black Sox scandal]. He swings with utmost sincerity. When he hits the ball it goes into wide-open spaces. When he misses, he misses with vehement sincerity."
"The Babe" embodied the spirit of 1920s sports, and The Roaring Twenties. In his day, he was revered as a hero in the streets of New York and played the perfect spoil tot he straight-laced nature of his New York Yankee teammate, Lou Gehrig.

1920s Sports':Football

Halfback Red Grange and Notre Dame coach Knute Rockney, led football bravely into a new era. College football was wildly popular, thanks in large part to many young men and women entering Universities in post-war America.

College football made money, profiting 21 million dollars for the Universities every year. Grange played for the University of Illinois and was known as "The Galloping Ghost" because of his uncanny ability not to be tackled. His elusiveness, size and power won him the honor of the "Greatest College Football Player of All Time" 80 years after he graduated from college.

Here's how Red Grange's running style was described:
A streak of fire, a breath of flame Eluding all who reach and clutch; A gray ghost thrown into the game That rival hands may never touch; A rubber bounding, blasting soul Whose destination is the goal.

1920s Sports':Boxing

The 1920s was owned by boxer Jack Dempsey. He, like Ruth, embodied the spirit of the Roaring Twenties with his bare-knuckled upbringing in Colorado and the way he would soak his face in brine to make his skin leathery and chew pine gum to strengthen his jaw.

Dempsey headlined the first million dollar gate at any sporting event in 1921, when he defended his World Title against George Carpentier. Dempsey was known for the amount of power in his menacing right hand, strengthened by the years he spent as a miner in Colorado.

1920s Sports':Horse Racing

Man o'War was the unquestioned king of the horses, winning races by an absurd margin of 100 lengths. In his career "Big Red" as he was known, won 20 of 21 races he started, losing only to a horse appropriately named "Upset".

He never won the Triple Crown because his owner felt he was too young to run a Mile and a quarter track. He spent 22 years at stud and sired his own Triple Crown winner, War Admiral.

Man o'War is widely regarded as the greatest racehorse in history.

1920s Sports':Tennis

Before John McEnroe graced the sport of tennis with his dramatic antics on the court, there was "Big" Bill Tilden of the 1920s. Known for his flair, his antics, the dramatic way he played the game. Bill Tilden was an actor on the court as much as he was a player.

He was so self-absorbed he even bankrolled plays, with him playing the lead character, of course. His matches were often dramatic because he played poorly to make them seem more exciting than they needed to be. He would often leave his sweater on for a few games, then take it off to make his fabulous comeback. Tilden was one of the forgotten characters of 1920s sports.

Helen Wills was one of the first female 1920s sports stars. She won her first title in 1923, when she was 17 years old.

She was the spoil to Tilden's expressive and dramatic nature, Wills was known as "Little Miss Poker Face" because of the business-like way she played the sport.

1920s Sports':Swimming

The 1920s was known for it's strange stunts like flagpole sitting, and barnstorming. When American, Gertrude Ederle swam across the English Channel in 1926, she not only became the first woman to do it, but her time of 14 hours and 31 minutes was nearly 2 hours faster than any man had ever completed the feat.

At the time, Ederle's feat was known as "the greatest sports story in the world."

1920s Sports': Golf

efore Tiger Woods, Arnold Palmer, and Jack Nicholas created their legends, there was Bobby Jones.

In the span of 8 years, Jones won 13 national championships, both in Europe and the United States. He was the original hot headed golfer, known to either play brilliantly, or to implode on the course. When playing poorly he even, at times, picked up his ball and quit.

Despite his temper Bobby Jones became an idol for the American public which loves his sense of style, his fearlessness in playing golf shots impossible to anyone less talented.

In the Golden Era, 1920s sports were still in their infancy. While still big businesses, sports had a sense of innocence that was starting to show its cracks, case in point, the Black Sox scandal of 1919. However the legends of 1920s sports remain legends today because of the way they played their respective games.

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1920s Sports: A Golden Age of Competition

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The Roaring Twenties are famous for many things, one of the most often forgotten is 1920s sports. "I have only one superstition, touch all the bases when I hit a home-run." It was a new era of heroes and goats.

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The Roaring Twenties are famous for many things, one of the most often forgotten is 1920s sports.

"I have only one superstition, touch all the bases when I hit a home-run."

It was a new era of heroes and goats.

From the Black Sox scandal of 1919, the historic home runs records of Babe Ruth, player Red Grange and coach Knute Rockne's domination in football, Jack Dempsey's vicious knock-outs, and Man o'Wars brilliant races, the sports of the 1920s have become legendary to fans around the world. This was "The Golden Age" of sports in America.

Newspapers turned sports into an American pastime and gave relief to an American public searching for some relief after the atrocities of World War 1.

Sportswriters became the character delivering the news to a public that couldn't get enough.

Baseball "America's Pastime"

Babe Ruth owned 1920s sports. He was the hard drinking, hard swinging hero of the Yankees' "Murderer's Row".Along with Lou Gehrig, Ruth put together one of the most impressive baseball careers of all time.

And he did it in an era before television, steroids, free agency and million dollar contracts. This quote from W.O. McGeehan,

"Babe Ruth with his bat pounded baseball back into popularity [after the Black Sox scandal]. He swings with utmost sincerity. When he hits the ball it goes into wide-open spaces. When he misses, he misses with vehement sincerity."
"The Babe" embodied the spirit of 1920s sports, and The Roaring Twenties. In his day, he was revered as a hero in the streets of New York and played the perfect spoil tot he straight-laced nature of his New York Yankee teammate, Lou Gehrig.

1920s Sports':Football

Halfback Red Grange and Notre Dame coach Knute Rockney, led football bravely into a new era. College football was wildly popular, thanks in large part to many young men and women entering Universities in post-war America.

College football made money, profiting 21 million dollars for the Universities every year. Grange played for the University of Illinois and was known as "The Galloping Ghost" because of his uncanny ability not to be tackled. His elusiveness, size and power won him the honor of the "Greatest College Football Player of All Time" 80 years after he graduated from college.

Here's how Red Grange's running style was described:
A streak of fire, a breath of flame Eluding all who reach and clutch; A gray ghost thrown into the game That rival hands may never touch; A rubber bounding, blasting soul Whose destination is the goal.

1920s Sports':Boxing

The 1920s was owned by boxer Jack Dempsey. He, like Ruth, embodied the spirit of the Roaring Twenties with his bare-knuckled upbringing in Colorado and the way he would soak his face in brine to make his skin leathery and chew pine gum to strengthen his jaw.

Dempsey headlined the first million dollar gate at any sporting event in 1921, when he defended his World Title against George Carpentier. Dempsey was known for the amount of power in his menacing right hand, strengthened by the years he spent as a miner in Colorado.

1920s Sports':Horse Racing

Man o'War was the unquestioned king of the horses, winning races by an absurd margin of 100 lengths. In his career "Big Red" as he was known, won 20 of 21 races he started, losing only to a horse appropriately named "Upset".

He never won the Triple Crown because his owner felt he was too young to run a Mile and a quarter track. He spent 22 years at stud and sired his own Triple Crown winner, War Admiral.

Man o'War is widely regarded as the greatest racehorse in history.

1920s Sports':Tennis

Before John McEnroe graced the sport of tennis with his dramatic antics on the court, there was "Big" Bill Tilden of the 1920s. Known for his flair, his antics, the dramatic way he played the game. Bill Tilden was an actor on the court as much as he was a player.

He was so self-absorbed he even bankrolled plays, with him playing the lead character, of course. His matches were often dramatic because he played poorly to make them seem more exciting than they needed to be. He would often leave his sweater on for a few games, then take it off to make his fabulous comeback. Tilden was one of the forgotten characters of 1920s sports.

Helen Wills was one of the first female 1920s sports stars. She won her first title in 1923, when she was 17 years old.

She was the spoil to Tilden's expressive and dramatic nature, Wills was known as "Little Miss Poker Face" because of the business-like way she played the sport.

1920s Sports':Swimming

The 1920s was known for it's strange stunts like flagpole sitting, and barnstorming. When American, Gertrude Ederle swam across the English Channel in 1926, she not only became the first woman to do it, but her time of 14 hours and 31 minutes was nearly 2 hours faster than any man had ever completed the feat.

At the time, Ederle's feat was known as "the greatest sports story in the world."

1920s Sports': Golf

efore Tiger Woods, Arnold Palmer, and Jack Nicholas created their legends, there was Bobby Jones.

In the span of 8 years, Jones won 13 national championships, both in Europe and the United States. He was the original hot headed golfer, known to either play brilliantly, or to implode on the course. When playing poorly he even, at times, picked up his ball and quit.

Despite his temper Bobby Jones became an idol for the American public which loves his sense of style, his fearlessness in playing golf shots impossible to anyone less talented.

In the Golden Era, 1920s sports were still in their infancy. While still big businesses, sports had a sense of innocence that was starting to show its cracks, case in point, the Black Sox scandal of 1919. However the legends of 1920s sports remain legends today because of the way they played their respective games.

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1920s Sports: A Golden Age of Competition

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The Roaring Twenties are famous for many things, one of the most often forgotten is 1920s sports. "I have only one superstition, touch all the bases when I hit a home-run." It was a new era of heroes and goats.

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How does visual art of the Harlem Renaissance relate to current-day events and issues? How do migration and displacement influence cultural production?
"I believe that the [African American's] advantages and opportunities are greater in Harlem than in any other place in the country, and that Harlem will become the intellectual, the cultural and the financial center for Negroes of the United States and will exert a vital influence upon all Negro peoples." -James Weldon Johnson, "Harlem: The Culture Capital," 1925

The Harlem Renaissance was a period of rich cross-disciplinary artistic and cultural activity among African Americans between the end of World War I (1917) and the onset of the Great Depression and lead up to World War II (the 1930s). Artists associated with the movement asserted pride in black life and identity, a rising consciousness of inequality and discrimination, and interest in the rapidly changing modern world-many experiencing a freedom of expression through the arts for the first time.

While the Harlem Renaissance may be best known for its literary and performing arts-pioneering figures such as Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston, Duke Ellington, and Ma Rainey may be familiar-sculptors, painters, and printmakers were key contributors to the first modern Afrocentric cultural movement and formed a black avant-garde in the visual arts.

Aaron Douglas (1899-1979) is known as the "father of African American art." He defined a modern visual language that represented black Americans in a new light. Douglas began his artistic career as a landscape painter but was influenced by modern art movements such as cubism, in which subjects appear fragmented and fractured, and by the graphic arts, which typically use bold colors and stylized forms. He and other artists also looked toward West Africa for inspiration, making personal connections to the stylized masks and sculpture from Benin, Congo, and Senegal, which they viewed as a link to their African heritage. They also turned to the art of antiquity, such as Egyptian sculptural reliefs, of popular interest due to the 1922 discovery of King Tutankhamen's tomb. Printmakers James Lesesne Wells(1902-1993) and Hale Woodruff (1900-1980) also explored a streamlined approach that drew from African and European artistic influences.

Sculptor Richmond Barthé (1901-1989) worked in a realistic style, representing his subjects in a nuanced and sympathetic light in which black Americans had seldom been depicted before. Painter Archibald John Motley Jr. (1891-1981) began his career during the 1920s as one of the first African American graduates of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. In the early part of his career, he created intimate and direct portraits, such as Portrait of My Grandmother of 1922.

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How do visual artists of the Harlem Renaissance explore black identity and political empowerment? How does visual art of the Harlem Renaissance relate to current-day events and issues? How do migration and displacement influence cultural production?

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Harlem Renaissance - Definition, Artists & How It Started | HISTORY

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The Harlem Renaissance marked a golden age in Black culture.

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National Museum of African American History and Culture

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A New African American Identity: The Harlem Renaissance

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Between the end of World War I and the mid-1930s, African Americans produced one of the most significant eras of cultural expression in the nation’s history—the Harlem Renaissance.

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The Harlem Renaissance was a great flowering of art, poetry, fiction and music that emerged out of the Harlem neighborhood of New York City during the century's 'roaring twenties.' During the Great Migration from 1910 to 1920, hundreds of thousands of African Americans moved from Southern to Northern America in search of work. A dense community of Black African Americans congregated in Harlem, where housing was in plentiful supply. This close-knit community of Black families became a strong and exciting cultural mecca for African Americas who finally discovered a new creative freedom like never before. From civil rights activist writers to jazz musicians, many of the 20 th most important voices emerged out of the Harlem Renaissance. We look through some of the ground-breaking historical movement's key characteristics.

Poetry and Fiction Flourished

Poetry was one of the earliest art forms to emerge during the Harlem Renaissance, and it was thanks to the pioneering leaders of the Black Pride movement, including African American activist W.E.B. Du Bois that several emergent poets were able to publish their work. Celebrated poetry volumes include Claude McKay's collection explored how Harlem Shadows , published in 1922, and Jean Toomer's , published in 1923. Meanwhile, fiction became an important means for African Americans to bring their voices into the public arena, and have their experiences heard. Jessie Redmon Fauset's 1924 novel There Is Confusion Black Manhattan: Account of the Development of Harlem , 1930, traces the explosion of creativity among the Black community of Harlem. Black African Americans can find a new cultural identity in a white-dominated city. Other writers created stirring socio-political observations, such as James Weldon Johnson, whose

Music Was a Vital Strand of the Harlem Renaissance

Music was undoubtedly a key characteristic of the Harlem Renaissance. The music style that emerged out of Harlem was jazz and blues, performed by outstanding musicians in Harlem's underground nightclubs and speakeasies. Harlem residents came out in droves to enjoy the lively music scene, as did white audiences from further afield. Many of the musicians who emerged during this time are still household names today, including Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Cab Calloway, Bessie Smith and Alberta Hunter. These musicians went on to shape the next generation of American singers including Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald and Janis Joplin.

Nightclubs

The Savoy Ballroom opened in Harlem in 1927, and it quickly became a legendary dance hall where world-leading musicians and dancers would perform. Tap dancers including John Bubbles and Bill 'Bojangles' Robinson frequented The Savoy, and many jazz and blues instrumentalists gave daring, experimental performances long into the night.

Another popular nightclub of the Harlem Renaissance was The Cotton Club, where Ellington and Calloway were regular performers, and bootleg liquor was readily available. By the mid-1920s musical performances were a defining feature of the Harlem cultural scene. Some performers expanded into white world and made their name in Broadway, such as Josephine Baker.

Many Artists Found their Voices During the Harlem Renaissance

While the field of visual arts was slower than other art forms to accept Black artists - museums, galleries and art schools were less welcoming - many leading artists nonetheless found exposure during this time. Leading artists include Aaron Douglas, known today as "the father of Black American art", who brought traditional African techniques into his large scale paintings and murals, and the legendary sculptor Augusta Savage, who made deeply intimate sculpted portraits of the African Americans who had influenced and shaped her life.

Members of the Harlem Renaissance Became Civil Rights Activists

Civil rights were fundamental to the Harlem Renaissance, at a time when African Americans were finally beginning to shake off the shackles of their past. Many of the leading intellectual voices of the Harlem Renaissance during the 1920s went on to become leading figures during the Civil Rights movement of the 1940s, including W.E.B. Du Bois and Alain Locke.

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The Harlem Renaissance was a great flowering of art, poetry, fiction and music that emerged out of the Harlem neighborhood of New York City during the century's 'roaring twenties.' During the Great Migration from 1910 to 1920, hundreds of thousands of African Americans moved from Southern to Northern America in search of work.

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Grown Up in the 1920s – Music - The Herbert Art Gallery & Museum

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Revisit the sounds of the Roaring 20s as part of our series on youth culture over the last 100 years, alongside our new exhibition, Grown Up in Britain.

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The radio as a form of entertainment grew in popularity in the 1920s United States. This inexpensive form of enjoyment for the whole family included radio shows, music, and more. The decade started off in 1921 with just 5 radio stations in the country but ended with 606 stations. That is some serious growth!

Let's take a look at 1920s radio and music in the United States.
Interested in knowing what music was popular when you were born? Find out here.
1920s Radio

What made the radio important in the 1920s?

In the 1920s, radio was able to bridge the divide in American culture from coast to coast. It was more effective than print media at sharing thoughts, culture, language, style, and more. For this reason, the importance of radio was more than just entertainment. It was a tool to communicate, interact, and bring the nation together.

The 1920s introduced an era of more innovation than what had been seen in the past. The economy was doing well and income increased. With that prosperity, families had more leisure time, and a favorite pastime became listening to the radio.

The first radio stations focused on broadcast news, serial stories, and political speeches, but they later included music, weather, and sports.

What radio shows were popular in the 1920s?

The most popular 1920s radio show was a situation comedy titled Amos 'n' Andy. The show was based around the taxicab business of Amos Jones, his friend Andrew Hogg Brown, and George "Kingfish" Stevens. It lasted more than 30 years.

Though popular in the 1920s, Amos 'n' Andy, which was performed by white artists, encouraged negative Black stereotypes. Many radio shows of this decade emulated this minstrel-style comedy. However, in 1929, Chicago's WSBC introduced The All-Negro Hour, the first variety show with all African American entertainers. The show helped pave the way for better representation of African Americans in radio and entertainment.

Radio in the 1920s also introduced sports programs into the home, which quickly became popular. Play-by-play descriptions were broadcast on the radio and helped popularize athletes such as Jim Thorpe, Gertrude Ederle, Helen Wills, and Babe Ruth.

1920s Music

What was the most popular music in the 1920s?

Music in the 1920s in the United States had variety, to say the least! Jazz, blues, swing, dance band, and ragtime were just a few of the most popular music genres of the decade. Almost all of these genres originated from the creative work of African Americans influenced by their culture and heritage.

Prior to the radio, music could be shared only through sheet music, piano rolls, or live performances. With the use of the radio waves, music of all kinds could easily be introduced to homes across the United States.

Jazz Music of the 1920s

Jazz music was created from the fusion of Anglo-American, African, and Creole influences, born in the melting pot of New Orleans, Louisiana. The 1920s are often called the Jazz Age because Jazz music became very popular during that time. With lots of improvising and syncopated rhythms, jazz music influenced dances, fashion, and culture. The upbeat sounds of jazz became a favorite on the radio. The most popular jazz musicians of the 1920s were Louis Armstrong and Duke Wellington.

Some of Armstrong's most famous hits were "Heebie Jeebies" (1926), "West End Blues" (1928), and "Ain't Misbehavin" (1929). Some of Duke Ellington's 1920s hits included "Creole Love Call" and "Black and Tan Fantasy."

Blues Music of the 1920s

Blues music used repetitive chords and a 12-bar structure. Often associated with personal trials, blues music frequently shared the stories of a prejudiced and segregated South. In fact, blues music was heavily influenced by the African spirituals sung by those who were enslaved. The singing of spirituals was a form of retaining resiliency and reprieve amidst oppressive circumstances. Sometimes, a blues tune could be considered comical or even witty.

Mamie Smith, a popular blues singer, was credited with being the first to record a blues vocal. The song she sang was titled "Crazy Blues." Other famous blues singers were Ma Rainey and Bessie Smith. Ma Rainey's most famous 1920s music included "See See Rider" (1924) and "Black Bottom" (1927). Bessie Smith had several hits during the 1920s as well, which included "Downhearted Blues" (1923) and "Tain't Nobody's Biz-Ness If I Do" (1923).

Dance Music of the 1920s

The most famous dance of the 1920s was the Charleston. This fun dance was set to music we might consider big band music of today, though it did have elements of ragtime. The Charleston made its debut in the 1923 Broadway show Runnin' Wild and quickly became a favorite in dance halls across the states.

Music in the 1920s also influenced dances such as the fox-trot, tango, and lindy hop. Big band orchestras would create music to the movements of the dancers.

What were the most popular songs of the 1920s?

The most popular songs of the 1920s covered a wide variety of genres. Here's a look at some of the top songs of the decade:

"Ain't Misbehavin'"-Fats Waller

"Dark Was the Night"-Blind Willie Johnson

"Downhearted Blues"-Bessie Smith

"In the Jailhouse Now"-Jimmie Rodgers

"My Man"-Fanny Brice

"Swanee"-Al Jolson

"West End Blues"-Louis Armstrong

Discover the Popular Songs and Shows of Your Childhood

You can also discover what songs and shows were popular when you were a child-or even when your parents or grandparents were! Enter your name and birthday into FamilySearch's All about Me experience (or sign in to your FamilySearch account-it's free!), and discover all sorts of fun facts about your birthday.

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Radio and Music in the 1920s United States * FamilySearch

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The radio as a form of entertainment grew in popularity in the 1920s United States. Learn about the most popular 1920s radio shows and 1920s music.

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1920s music was called, "a combination of nervousness, lawlessness, primitive savage animalism, and lasciviousness."

Jazz was the music of the 1920's: loud and syncopated. This was the Jazz Age!

The jazz recordings were often called "race records," and were sold and played typically in the black neighborhoods of large cities like New York and Chicago.

Controversial throughout its history, jazz was America's first contribution to the music world. And it all got started in the 1920's.

The Famous Places and Musicians of the 1920s

When you think of jazz you probably think of people and places like:

Controversy In the 1920's Music Jazz Scene

The top 4 songs on the pop charts of the 1920's, compiled utilizing research of Billboard Charts from a bygone era, you will see the names of recording artists like Al Jolson, Paul Whiteman, Mamie Smith, and Ted Lewis and his Orchestra.

These songs and their songwriters reflect an age of change in the ever-burgeoning music industry. Many soldiers put down their weapons and took up an instrument.

Dance bands, Jazz, and Blues artists took to the main stages, front and center, post-World-War-I. Despite the prohibition in American, the music of the age was upbeat, dance-able, booming with life, and in celebration of a newfound optimism and hope for the future.

It was the great classic Jazz singers of the 1920's , Mamie Smith, Ida Cox, Ma Rainey, and Bessie Smith, whose vocal styling inspired the likes of future Jazz greats and singers like Billie Holiday and Nina Simone.

Did you know that Mamie Smith was the first African American artist to make vocal blues recordings? She could do it all: she was a vaudeville singer, a dancer, a pianist, and even an actress.

In Mamie Smith's hit song "Crazy Blues" written in 1920, alongside the swinging tempo and infectious beat, you hear many of the common themes that were threaded within the major hit songs of this time period.

The lyrics are simple, sometimes a bit dirty, direct, and usually revolve around a current or past lover. The lover in almost every case has been wronged or mistreated, is pining for love, or is experiencing the sorrow and the aftermath of love lost.

Also rampant in the songwriting is the usage of many, many good old-fashioned euphemisms.

Take a listen. "Honey" is not always honey, and that "Daddy" might not have been biological, if you get my drift.

"Race" Records and the Musical Underbelly

In addition to taking on a more unfiltered and raw approach to once taboo topics like sex and race, as acoustical recording technology improved (and went electric) and the overall sound of recorded music improved, independent recording labels began to make their mark on the industry.

These new labels weren't afraid of taking risks on new, emerging artists and styles. Along with the popularization and commercialization of radio in the mix, the music market was ready and set for growth.

In America, the hidden "speakeasies" that emerged as part of the landscape provided the perfect environment for jazz to flourish.

With a secret knock or a word, one could enter a new world where the rules were relaxed and the booze was always flowing.

Bigger bands were replaced with small jazz duos and trios. In these illegal havens rife with dancing and gambling, and even gangsters, there was also freedom for the races to intermingle, inspiring songs like Duke Ellington's "Black and Tan Fantasy."

The issues revolving around race and class were always prevalent during this time of segregation, when popular white musicians like Paul Whiteman -band leader and orchestral director of one of the most popular bands of the 1920's- were later criticized by traditional jazz musicians saying that it was a mockery of what jazz was intended to be - free and impressionable - not burdened by what the listeners want.

What this is referring to is the fact Whiteman took an underground style of music which was not typically played by white guys, and fused it with other styles of music more palatable to the average (white) population.

When coupled with the fact that the people who listened to this music prior to it being put on the radio had to do so in illegal clubs and many African Americans were arrested for playing it in years prior - you could imagine why people might have an issue.

A modern example of this happening would be the punk revolution of the early (19) 90's. Nirvana popularized punk which was a primarily underground genre of music and made it more mainstream than had ever been heard in the past by omitting the jagged guitars, pitter patter drums and shrieking vocals you might hear from a band like Dead Kennedy's or The Melvins.

Obviously your individual feelings about music will allow you to create your own reasoning about this situation but, this exact cycle has repeated itself countless times throughout music genres over the centuries.

These days they call it cultural appropriation but regardless of what you call it, because of the fusing of Whiteman, underground music had a major impact on the cultural scene and helped close the distance between people in this age.

However, even Duke Ellington, in his own autobiography, proclaimed that Whiteman, in his estimation, at least, deftly held the title of "King of Jazz" despite the naysayers: "Paul Whiteman was known as the King of Jazz," Ellington said, "and no one as yet has come near carrying that title with more certainty and dignity."

In one of Whiteman's most popular songs, "Whispering," you can hear the technical expertise and precision of his ensemble.

There was a reason the 1920's were "Roaring" - the musical varieties were expanding, dance crazes were popularized, and the world was alive with innovation.

This musical introduction to modernization and industrialization created a further divide between the old and the new, the past and the present, creating a new space for artists to work and play.

1920s Music: King Oliver

Oliver's big hit was called "Dippermouth Blues," the band played the song nightly at the request of the crowd.

"Dippermouth Blues" was actually the first jazz song to feature a fully-developed trumpet solo. We owe a lot to this song alone!

At the time, King Oliver was the most famous jazz player in the world, but right behind him in "The Creole Jazz Band" was Louis Armstrong.

1920s Music:Louis Armstrong

In many ways Armstrong is responsible for popularizing jazz throughout the world. He played everywhere and with everyone.

He was a great 1920s musician and ambassador of music throughout the world.

1920s Music:Leon "Bix" Beiderbecke

His playing style was softer and more relaxed than Armstrong's, it's been described as "a bullet hitting a chime."

Beiderbecke's music was the forebearer and paved the way for the "cool" jazz musicians that would become wildly popular in the 1940s and 1950s.

As you can see there is a tons of information about 1920s music. This page is dedicated to bring it to you. Check back often as I'm writing more on figures such as Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald, Jelly Roll Morton, and others.

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1920s Music: Jazz in the Roaring Twenties

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1920s music ushered in jazz. The Roaring Twenties became America's first unique contribution to the musical world.

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The Prohibition Era began in 1920 when the 18th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which banned the manufacture, transportation and sale of intoxicating liquors, went into effect with the passage of the Volstead Act. Despite the new legislation, Prohibition was difficult to enforce. The increase of the illegal production and sale of liquor (known as "bootlegging"), the proliferation of speakeasies (illegal drinking spots) and the accompanying rise in gang violence and organized crime led to waning support for Prohibition by the end of the 1920s. In early 1933, Congress adopted a resolution proposing a 21st Amendment to the Constitution that would repeal the 18th. The 21st Amendment was ratified on December 5, 1933, ending Prohibition.

Origins of Prohibition

In the 1820s and '30s, a wave of religious revivalism swept the United States, leading to increased calls for temperance, as well as other "perfectionist" movements such as the abolitionist movement to end slavery.

In 1838, the state of Massachusetts passed a temperance law banning the sale of spirits in less than 15-gallon quantities; though the law was repealed two years later, it set a precedent for such legislation. Maine passed the first state prohibition laws in 1846, followed by a stricter law in 1851. A number of other states had followed suit by the time the Civil War began in 1861.

Did you know? In 1932, Franklin D. Roosevelt defeated the incumbent President Herbert Hoover, who once called Prohibition "the great social and economic experiment, noble in motive and far reaching in purpose." Some say FDR celebrated the repeal of Prohibition by enjoying a dirty martini, his preferred drink.

By the turn of the century, temperance societies like the Woman's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) were a common fixture in communities across the United States. Women played a strong role in the temperance movement, as alcohol was seen as a destructive force in families and marriages.

In 1906, a new wave of attacks began on the sale of liquor, led by the Anti-Saloon League (established in 1893) and driven by a reaction to urban growth, as well as the rise of evangelical Protestantism and its view of saloon culture as corrupt and ungodly.

In addition, many factory owners during the Industrial Revolution supported prohibition in their desire to prevent accidents and increase the efficiency of their workers in an era of increased industrial production and extended working hours.

Volstead Act

In 1917, after the United States entered World War I, President Woodrow Wilson instituted a temporary wartime prohibition in order to save grain for producing food. That same year, Congress submitted the 18th Amendment, which banned the manufacture, transportation and sale of intoxicating liquors, for state ratification. Though Congress had stipulated a seven-year time limit for the process, the amendment received the support of the necessary three-quarters of U.S. states in just 11 months.

Ratified on January 16, 1919, the 18th Amendment went into effect one year later, by which time no fewer than 33 states had already enacted their own prohibition legislation. In October 1919, Congress put forth the National Prohibition Act, which provided guidelines for the federal enforcement of Prohibition. Championed by Representative Andrew Volstead of Minnesota, the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, the legislation was more commonly known as the Volstead Act.

Enforcement of Prohibition

Both federal and local government struggled to enforce Prohibition-Hoover's "noble experiment"-over the course of the 1920s. Enforcement was initially assigned to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), and was later transferred to the Justice Department and the Bureau of Prohibition, or Prohibition Bureau.

In general, Prohibition was enforced much more strongly in areas where the population was sympathetic to the legislation-mainly rural areas and small towns-and much more loosely in urban areas. Despite very early signs of success, including a decline in arrests for drunkenness and a reported 30 percent drop in alcohol consumption, those who wanted to keep drinking found ever more inventive ways to do it.

Organized Crime

The illegal manufacturing and sale of liquor (known as "bootlegging") went on throughout the decade, along with the operation of " speakeasies " (stores or nightclubs selling alcohol), the smuggling of alcohol across state lines and the informal production of liquor ("moonshine" or "bathtub gin") in private homes.

In addition, the Prohibition era encouraged the rise of criminal activity associated with bootlegging. The most notorious example was the Chicago gangster Al Capone, who earned a staggering $60 million annually from bootleg operations and speakeasies.

Such illegal operations fueled a corresponding rise in gang violence, including the St. Valentine's Day Massacre in Chicago in 1929, in which several men dressed as policemen (and believed to be associated with Capone) shot and killed a group of men in an enemy gang.

When Did Prohibition End?

The high price of bootleg liquor meant that the nation's working class and poor were far more restricted during Prohibition than middle or upper-class Americans. Even as costs for law enforcement, jails and prisons spiraled upward, support for Prohibition was waning by the end of the Roaring Twenties. In addition, fundamentalist and nativist forces had gained more control over the temperance movement, alienating its more moderate members.

There were also many unintended consequences of Prohibition: Some cash-strapped restaurants shuttered their doors since they could no longer make a profit from liquor sales. Thousands of people died each year from drinking cheap moonshine tainted with toxins. And revenues shrank for many states that had previously relied on liquor taxes to fund roads, schools and other public benefits.

With the country mired in the Great Depression by 1932, creating jobs and revenue by legalizing the liquor industry had an undeniable appeal. Democrat Franklin D. Roosevelt ran for president that year on a platform calling for Prohibition's repeal, and easily won victory over the incumbent President Herbert Hoover.

FDR's victory meant the end of Prohibition, and in February 1933 Congress adopted a resolution proposing a 21st Amendment to the Constitution that would repeal the 18th. The amendment was submitted to the states, and in December 1933 Utah provided the 36th and final necessary vote for ratification. Though a few states continued to prohibit alcohol after Prohibition's end, all had abandoned the ban by 1966.

Sources

Prohibition: A Case Study of Progressive Reform. Library of Congress.
Unintended Consequences of Prohibition. PBS: Prohibition.
Alcohol Prohibition Was a Failure. Cato Institute.

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Prohibition: Years, Amendment and Definition - HISTORY

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The Prohibition Era began in 1920 when the 18th Amendment outlawed liquor sales per the Volstead Act, but in 1932 the 21st Amendment ended Prohibition.

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Printable Version The expansion of government activities during World War I was reversed during the 1920s. Government efforts to break-up trusts and regulate business practices gave way to a new emphasis on partnerships between government and business.

In 1920, an Ohio political operator named Harry Daugherty offered a prediction about what would happen at that year's Republican presidential nominating convention:

The convention will be deadlocked, and after the other candidates have gone their limit, some 12 or 15 men, worn out and bleary eyed for lack of sleep, will sit down about 2 o'clock in the morning around a table in a smoke-filled room in some hotel and decide the nomination. When the time comes, [Warren] Harding will be nominated.

Daugherty was right. In 1920, a divided Republican convention selected Harding, a U.S. Senator from Ohio, as its presidential nominee.

Harding's presidency is best known for a series of scandals that marred his time in office. But he also had some genuine accomplishments. He pardoned the imprisoned Socialist party leader, Eugene Debs, and persuaded the steel industry to end the 12-hour day and replace it with an 8-hour day. Harding also called an international disarmament conference in Washington that slowed down the arms race. At the end of the conference, a treaty was signed. The treaty provided that, for every five battleships that the United States and Britain were each allowed to build, the Japanese could build three ships, and the Italians and the French could each build one-and-three-quarters ships.

The son of a poor Ohio farmer, Harding spent two years at a rural academy, Ohio Central College, and received a diploma at the age of 16. He taught school and sold insurance for several years before he bought a local newspaper. He guaranteed the newspaper's success by mentioning every town resident in the paper at least twice a year. Harding described his editorial policy as "inoffensivism." He later entered Republican politics, rising from lieutenant governor to U.S. Senator before being nominated for the presidency.

Harding made few major pronouncements during the campaign. The Republican Party followed an associate's advice: "Keep Warren at home. If he goes out on tour, somebody's sure to ask him questions, and Warren's just the sort of damned fool that will try to answer them." Harding largely confined his speeches to uncontroversial platitudes about the need to avoid moral crusades and return to "normalcy":

America's present need is not heroics but healing; not nostrums, but normalcy; not revolution, but restoration; not agitation, but adjustment; not surgery, but serenity....

Harding had few illusions about his qualifications for the presidency. "I am a man of limited talents from a small town," he said. He appointed a number of sleazy and corrupt officials to office. His administration was marred by scandals involving bribes and kickbacks at the Justice Department and the Veterans Bureau. After his sudden death from a stroke in 1923, his administration's biggest scandal, known as the Teapot Dome, was revealed. His Interior Secretary, Albert B. Fall, was sent to prison for accepting $360,000 in bribes for transferring U.S. naval oil reserves in Wyoming to oil operators in exchange for above ground petroleum storage. Private oil companies were also draining oil from federal lands.

Vice President Calvin Coolidge became president after Harding's death. Coolidge had come to national attention in 1919, when, as governor of Massachusetts, he broke the Boston police strike after declaring: "there is no right to strike against the public interest, anytime, anywhere."

Coolidge's well-deserved nickname was "Silent Cal." Some acquaintances wagered whether they could make him say more than two words. His answer: "You lose." During the 1924 presidential race, reporters asked him whether he had any statement about the campaign. "No," he replied. He was then asked whether he had anything to say about the world situation. "No," he answered. Did he have anything to say about Prohibition? "No." Then he told the reporters, "Now remember, don't quote me." At the end of his presidency, he was asked whether he had a farewell message for the American people, he paused and said, "Good-bye."

Coolidge slept ten hours a night, napped every afternoon, and seldom worked more than four hours a day. He spoke out ardently on behalf of the nation's business culture. "The man who builds a factory builds a temple," said Coolidge. "The man who works there, worships there." The president was convinced that the formula for economic prosperity was simple: "The chief business of the American people is business. If government kept its hands off the economy, business would prosper."

Among the most notable acts of his presidency were vetoes of bills to assist farmers in developing government power plants along the Tennessee River. The best known accomplishment of his presidency was the Kellogg-Briand Pact, an international agreement outlawing the use of force to settle international disputes. Embodying the anti-war sentiment of the 1920s, this agreement lacked any methods of enforcement.

Copyright 2021 Digital History

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Printable Version The expansion of government activities during World War I was reversed during the 1920s. Government efforts to break-up trusts and regulate business practices gave way to a new emphasis on partnerships between government and business.

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Teapot Dome Scandal - Definition, Dates & Effects

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The Teapot Dome Scandal of the 1920s shocked Americans by revealing an unprecedented level of greed and corruption within the federal government. In the end, the scandal would empower the Senate to conduct rigorous investigations into government corruption.

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Women's Rights Movement Begins

The campaign for women's suffrage began in earnest in the decades before the Civil War. During the 1820s and '30s, most states had extended the franchise to all white men, regardless of how much money or property they had.

At the same time, all sorts of reform groups were proliferating across the United States- temperance leagues, religious movements, moral-reform societies, anti- slavery organizations-and in many of these, women played a prominent role.

Meanwhile, many American women were beginning to chafe against what historians have called the "Cult of True Womanhood": that is, the idea that the only "true" woman was a pious, submissive wife and mother concerned exclusively with home and family.

Put together, all of these contributed to a new way of thinking about what it meant to be a woman and a citizen of the United States.

Seneca Falls Convention

In 1848, a group of abolitionist activists-mostly women, but some men-gathered in Seneca Falls, New York to discuss the problem of women's rights. They were invited there by the reformers Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott.

Most of the delegates to the Seneca Falls Convention agreed: American women were autonomous individuals who deserved their own political identities.

"We hold these truths to be self-evident," proclaimed the Declaration of Sentiments that the delegates produced, "that all men and women are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."

What this meant, among other things, was that they believed women should have the right to vote.

Civil Rights and Women's Rights During the Civil War

During the 1850s, the women's rights movement gathered steam, but lost momentum when the Civil War began. Almost immediately after the war ended, the 14th Amendment and the 15th Amendment to the Constitution raised familiar questions of suffrage and citizenship.

The 14th Amendment, ratified in 1868, extends the Constitution's protection to all citizens-and defines "citizens" as "male"; the 15th, ratified in 1870, guarantees Black men the right to vote.

Some women's suffrage advocates believed that this was their chance to push lawmakers for truly universal suffrage. As a result, they refused to support the 15th Amendment and even allied with racist Southerners who argued that white women's votes could be used to neutralize those cast by African Americans.

In 1869, a new group called the National Woman Suffrage Association was founded by Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony. They began to fight for a universal-suffrage amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

Others argued that it was unfair to endanger Black enfranchisement by tying it to the markedly less popular campaign for female suffrage. This pro-15th-Amendment faction formed a group called the American Woman Suffrage Association and fought for the franchise on a state-by-state basis.

Gallery: The Progressive Campaign for Suffrage

This animosity eventually faded, and in 1890 the two groups merged to form the National American Woman Suffrage Association. Elizabeth Cady Stanton was the organization's first president.

By then, the suffragists' approach had changed. Instead of arguing that women deserved the same rights and responsibilities as men because women and men were "created equal," the new generation of activists argued that women deserved the vote because they were different from men.

They could make their domesticity into a political virtue, using the franchise to create a purer, more moral "maternal commonwealth."

This argument served many political agendas: Temperance advocates, for instance, wanted women to have the vote because they thought it would mobilize an enormous voting bloc on behalf of their cause, and many middle-class white people were swayed once again by the argument that the enfranchisement of white women would "ensure immediate and durable white supremacy, honestly attained."

Did you know? In 1923, the National Woman's Party proposed an amendment to the Constitution that prohibited all discrimination on the basis of sex. The so-called Equal Rights Amendment has never been ratified.

Winning the Vote at Last

Starting in 1910, some states in the West began to extend the vote to women for the first time in almost 20 years. Idaho and Utah had given women the right to vote at the end of the 19th century.

Still, southern and eastern states resisted. In 1916, NAWSA president Carrie Chapman Catt unveiled what she called a "Winning Plan" to get the vote at last: a blitz campaign that mobilized state and local suffrage organizations all over the country, with a special focus on those recalcitrant regions.

Meanwhile, a splinter group called the National Woman's Party founded by Alice Paul focused on more radical, militant tactics-hunger strikes and White House pickets, for instance-aimed at winning dramatic publicity for their cause.

World War I slowed the suffragists' campaign but helped them advance their argument nonetheless: Women's work on behalf of the war effort, activists pointed out, proved that they were just as patriotic and deserving of citizenship as men.

Finally, on August 18, 1920, the 19th Amendment to the Constitution was ratified. And on November 2 of that year, more than 8 million women across the United States voted in elections for the first time.

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Women's Suffrage - The U.S. Movement, Leaders & 19th Amendment

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The women's suffrage movement was a decades-long fight to win the right to vote for women in the United States. On August 26, 1920, the 19th Amendment to the Constitution was finally ratified, enfranchising all American women and declaring for the first time that they, like men, deserve all the rights and responsibilities of citizenship.

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Women's Rights Movement Begins

The campaign for women's suffrage began in earnest in the decades before the Civil War. During the 1820s and '30s, most states had extended the franchise to all white men, regardless of how much money or property they had.

At the same time, all sorts of reform groups were proliferating across the United States- temperance leagues, religious movements, moral-reform societies, anti- slavery organizations-and in many of these, women played a prominent role.

Meanwhile, many American women were beginning to chafe against what historians have called the "Cult of True Womanhood": that is, the idea that the only "true" woman was a pious, submissive wife and mother concerned exclusively with home and family.

Put together, all of these contributed to a new way of thinking about what it meant to be a woman and a citizen of the United States.

Seneca Falls Convention

In 1848, a group of abolitionist activists-mostly women, but some men-gathered in Seneca Falls, New York to discuss the problem of women's rights. They were invited there by the reformers Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott.

Most of the delegates to the Seneca Falls Convention agreed: American women were autonomous individuals who deserved their own political identities.

"We hold these truths to be self-evident," proclaimed the Declaration of Sentiments that the delegates produced, "that all men and women are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."

What this meant, among other things, was that they believed women should have the right to vote.

Civil Rights and Women's Rights During the Civil War

During the 1850s, the women's rights movement gathered steam, but lost momentum when the Civil War began. Almost immediately after the war ended, the 14th Amendment and the 15th Amendment to the Constitution raised familiar questions of suffrage and citizenship.

The 14th Amendment, ratified in 1868, extends the Constitution's protection to all citizens-and defines "citizens" as "male"; the 15th, ratified in 1870, guarantees Black men the right to vote.

Some women's suffrage advocates believed that this was their chance to push lawmakers for truly universal suffrage. As a result, they refused to support the 15th Amendment and even allied with racist Southerners who argued that white women's votes could be used to neutralize those cast by African Americans.

In 1869, a new group called the National Woman Suffrage Association was founded by Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony. They began to fight for a universal-suffrage amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

Others argued that it was unfair to endanger Black enfranchisement by tying it to the markedly less popular campaign for female suffrage. This pro-15th-Amendment faction formed a group called the American Woman Suffrage Association and fought for the franchise on a state-by-state basis.

Gallery: The Progressive Campaign for Suffrage

This animosity eventually faded, and in 1890 the two groups merged to form the National American Woman Suffrage Association. Elizabeth Cady Stanton was the organization's first president.

By then, the suffragists' approach had changed. Instead of arguing that women deserved the same rights and responsibilities as men because women and men were "created equal," the new generation of activists argued that women deserved the vote because they were different from men.

They could make their domesticity into a political virtue, using the franchise to create a purer, more moral "maternal commonwealth."

This argument served many political agendas: Temperance advocates, for instance, wanted women to have the vote because they thought it would mobilize an enormous voting bloc on behalf of their cause, and many middle-class white people were swayed once again by the argument that the enfranchisement of white women would "ensure immediate and durable white supremacy, honestly attained."

Did you know? In 1923, the National Woman's Party proposed an amendment to the Constitution that prohibited all discrimination on the basis of sex. The so-called Equal Rights Amendment has never been ratified.

Winning the Vote at Last

Starting in 1910, some states in the West began to extend the vote to women for the first time in almost 20 years. Idaho and Utah had given women the right to vote at the end of the 19th century.

Still, southern and eastern states resisted. In 1916, NAWSA president Carrie Chapman Catt unveiled what she called a "Winning Plan" to get the vote at last: a blitz campaign that mobilized state and local suffrage organizations all over the country, with a special focus on those recalcitrant regions.

Meanwhile, a splinter group called the National Woman's Party founded by Alice Paul focused on more radical, militant tactics-hunger strikes and White House pickets, for instance-aimed at winning dramatic publicity for their cause.

World War I slowed the suffragists' campaign but helped them advance their argument nonetheless: Women's work on behalf of the war effort, activists pointed out, proved that they were just as patriotic and deserving of citizenship as men.

Finally, on August 18, 1920, the 19th Amendment to the Constitution was ratified. And on November 2 of that year, more than 8 million women across the United States voted in elections for the first time.

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Women's Suffrage - The U.S. Movement, Leaders & 19th Amendment

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The women's suffrage movement was a decades-long fight to win the right to vote for women in the United States. On August 26, 1920, the 19th Amendment to the Constitution was finally ratified, enfranchising all American women and declaring for the first time that they, like men, deserve all the rights and responsibilities of citizenship.

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No cultural symbol of the 1920s is more recognizable than the flapper. A young woman with a short "bob" hairstyle, cigarette dangling from her painted lips, dancing to a live jazz band. Flappers romped through the Roaring Twenties, enjoying the new freedoms ushered in by the end of the First World War and the dawn of a new era of prosperity, urbanism and consumerism.

The decade kicked off with the passage of the 19th Amendment, which gave white women the vote. Women also joined the workforce in increasing numbers, participated actively in the nation's new mass consumer culture, and enjoyed more freedom in their personal lives. Despite the heady freedoms embodied by the flapper, real liberation and equality for women remained elusive in the 1920s, and it would be left to later generations of women to fully benefit from the social changes the decade set in motion.

The exact origins of the word 'flapper' remain unknown.

While the exact origin of the term "flapper" is unknown, it is assumed to have originated in Britain before World War I, when it was used to describe gawky young teenage girls. After the war, the word would become synonymous with the new breed of 1920s women who bobbed their hair above their ears, wore skirts that skimmed their knees, smoked cigarettes and drank alcohol while dancing in jazz clubs, always surrounded by admiring male suitors.

Flappers were defined by how they dressed, danced and talked.

As Joshua M. Zeitz writes in Flapper: A Madcap Story of Sex, Style, Celebrity and the Women Who Made America Modern, flapper fashion wouldn't have been complete without the creeping hemline, which by 1925 or 1936 reached a shocking height of 14 inches above the ground. Sheer stockings, sometimes even rolled below the knees, completed the scandalous look.

Flappers wore their skirts shorter so they could show off their legs and ankles-but also so they could dance. They particularly loved the Charleston, a 1920s dance craze involving waving arms and fast-moving feet that had been pioneered by African Americans, first in the South and later in Harlem.

Dancing proved challenging in traditional women's fashion, not only with long dresses but also with traditional corsets that tightly bound a woman's midsection and accentuated her waist. Around 1923, French designer Coco Chanel introduced what became known as the "garçonne look," featuring not just high hemlines but dropped or nonexistent waistlines and straight, sleeveless tops. With lighter and more flexible undergarments that created a straight, slim silhouette, this new design allowed women to dance freely.

It wasn't just their fashion that made flappers; It was also their behavior and attitude. Flappers were young, fast-moving, fast-talking, reckless and unfazed by previous social conventions or taboos. They smoked cigarettes, drank alcohol, rode in and drove cars and kissed and "petted" with different men.

Women move to cities and into the workforce, but stayed in traditional 'women's roles.'

The flapper was born out of a growing landscape in America. By 1920, for the first time in the nation's history, more Americans (51 percent) were living in cities rather than in rural areas. As part of the nation's urbanization and economic growth, more and more women were entering the workforce. By 1929, more than a quarter of all women, and more than half of single women, were gainfully employed.

For the most part, however, the increase in working women didn't represent a challenge to traditional gender roles. Nearly a third of working women in the 1920s were domestic servants, while the rest were clerical workers, factory workers, store clerks and other "feminized" professions. "Women are working, but they're working in what are called 'women's jobs,'" says Lynn Dumenil, professor emerita of history at Occidental College and author of The Second Line of Defense: American Women and World War I.

Even women who blazed a trail in politics faced barriers due to their gender: Most female officeholders worked primarily on what were seen as "women's issues," preventing them from acquiring too much power within their political parties. It progressed though, with a handful of women would be elected to the U.S. House of Representatives (none to the Senate), and many more served at the state and local levels.

Not only were women hitting a glass ceiling with job fields, but workplace discrimination and wage inequality also ran rampant throughout the '20s. As Gail Collins writes in her book America's Women, the average weekly wage for men in 1927 was $29.35, compared to only $17.34 for women.

While their wages were not high, women joined the new mass consumer culture.

Their wages might not have matched that of their male counterparts, but working women used their purchasing power to join the nation's new mass consumer culture. "The nature of domestic life changes for urban women, certainly, in the '20s," Dumenil says. By 1927, nearly two-thirds of American homes would have electricity, and new consumer goods like the washing machine, refrigerator and vacuum cleaner were revolutionizing housework and home life. Women were the major target audience for many of the new products, including household appliances, clothing and cosmetics.

The rise of the automobile contributed to the sense of freedom and possibility that suffused the Roaring Twenties. "The car is central to Americans' lives in the 1920s, across the board," Dumenil explains. "Not everyone can afford one, but consumer credit also expands in the '20s," leading to a new generation of American debtors. Meanwhile, the information revolution brought about by the emergence of the radio allowed a newly vibrant, youth-centered, urban culture to spread across the United States.

The flapper lifestyle also affected marriages and sexuality.

Housework wasn't the only factor changing for women on the home front. "The nature of marriage starts to change," Dumenil explains. "There's more of a sense, not of equality, but more of companionship between men and women in marriage. The assumption about women's sexuality changes." Birth control was becoming more widely available, at least for more privileged women, which helped limit family size and allowed women the freedom to explore their sexuality without facing the consequences of unwanted pregnancies.

"At least for some women, there's more freedom in their personal lives [in the 1920s]," Dumenil says. "A little less restriction. And it's not just about sex, although that's part of it, but clothing, dancing, the social world and the like."

This freedom had limits, however, and marriage always remained the ultimate goal. As Collins writes, only about 10 percent of women in the 1920s kept their jobs after marriage, most of them working-class women whose family needed their paycheck.

Dumenil also points out that the fear of one's reputation still worried flappers. "There's a sense that you have to be really careful about your sexual activity, for fear that you'll lose your reputation and won't get married...So the flapper's wildness is always, I would say, contained by that."

Zelda Fitzgerald and the end of the Roaring Twenties.

Arguably the most famous flapper of all was Zelda Sayre Fitzgerald, who, before meeting and marrying the novelist F. Scott Fitzgerald, spent her nights whirling around country club dances (and sneaking out to drink and "neck") with any number of young Alabama gentlemen. After their marriage in 1920, the hard-partying couple lived the ultimate Roaring Twenties lifestyle in both New York City and France. Though Zelda was an artist, a dancer and a writer herself, she would be best known as the muse inspiring her husband's vivid stories of life in the Jazz Age, which are often credited with creating the enduring image of the flapper. By the late '20s, however, Scott's drinking and Zelda's mental illness drove them apart. In 1930, Zelda had a nervous breakdown, and she would spend the rest of her life in sanatoriums.

In some ways, Zelda's decline paralleled that of the flapper image she embodied. The stock market crash of October 1929 effectively marked the end of the Roaring Twenties, an era F. Scott Fitzgerald would later call "the most expensive orgy in history." By the onset of the Great Depression, Hollywood and the mass media had moved on from the flappers, and in the 1930s women's fashion would revert to more traditional styles, with accentuated waists and longer hemlines.

The spirit of the flappers lives on.

Some changes that occurred in the 1920s endured. Though the Depression wiped out much of America's prosperity and consumer confidence, the nation's mass consumer culture would eventually re-emerge, stronger than ever.

In the decades to come, more and more women would pursue higher education and enter political life as activists, lobbyists or lawmakers. The transformation of sexual mores and family life that occurred in the 1920s also persisted. "Changes in the family, the movement toward smaller families, birth control, fewer restraints in private life," Dumenil says-these changes were "permanent."

Fact Check

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How Flappers of the Roaring Twenties Redefined Womanhood | HISTORY

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Young women with short "bob" hairstyles, cigarettes dangling from their painted lips, dancing to a live jazz band, explored new-found freedoms.

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In August 1929, Ladies Home Journal published an article titled "Everybody Ought to Be Rich." In it, businessman John J. Raskob told Americans that if they invested $15 in the stock market every month, in 20 years they could have $80,000 (over $1 million today). Raskob insisted that "almost anyone who is employed can do that if he tries."

For wealthy, white Americans like Raskob, the "Roaring '20s" was a time of immense economic prosperity. Yet for most Americans, it wasn't. Low-wage jobs paid an average of $25 a week for men and $18 for women. So if low-wage workers had followed Raskob's advice, they would have been placing most of a week's earnings in the stock market every month.

In fact, income inequality increased so much during the 1920s, that by 1928, the top one percent of families received 23.9 percent of all pretax income. About 60 percent of families made less than $2,000 a year, the income level the Bureau of Labor Statistics classified as the minimum livable income for a family of five.

As W.E.B. Du Bois observed in a 1926 essay: "We have today in the United States, cheek by jowl, Prosperity and Depression."

Farmers Were Stuck With Surplus

The speakeasy party culture popularized in books, movies and magazines was only accessible to a small portion of wealthy, urban and mostly white Americans. Black Americans and immigrants faced violence from the newly revived Ku Klux Klan, and many workers' wages either didn't keep up with productivity or fell off completely. For farmers in particular, the Great Depression basically began after World War I.

During that war, U.S. farmers had increased food production to feed European allies. Afterward, prices and demand dropped, and farmers were stuck with an oversupply they couldn't sell.

"Coming out of the war when exports fall, [farmers] get into this very unfortunate feedback loop," says David Sicilia, a history professor at the University of Maryland. "Prices are falling and in order to continue to survive, farmers basically respond by planting even more. So there's overproduction layered on top of overproduction, and so they get into this kind of vicious cycle."

Overproduction also became a problem for manufacturing companies. Even though families that couldn't afford to pay for radios, cars, dishwashers and other expensive items upfront could now purchase them on credit, the amount of new products companies produced still exceeded the number that families were able to buy. One of the contributing factors to this overproduction was companies' desire to expand and drive up profits for shareholders.

Anti-Labor Climate

There was a strong belief under the presidents of the 1920s that prioritizing shareholder profits would create a stronger economy. Robert Chiles, a history professor at the University of Maryland, says that when New York Governor Al Smith tried to gain state control of hydroelectric development to give residents lower energy rates, a memorandum from President Calvin Coolidge 's administration opposing the idea stated that it was acceptable for New York residents to pay a lot for electricity because this increased the price of stocks.

Although many factory workers saw their wages increase modestly during the 1920s, these wages didn't keep up with their productivity. Most corporations rewarded their shareholders with large dividends while trying to keep worker wages low.

It was difficult for workers to fight for higher wages because "there was a movement in terms of more aggressive application of labor law," says Mark Joseph Stelzner, an economics professor at Connecticut College. Courts often ruled in favor of businesses (the Supreme Court even struck down a child labor law in 1918). Southern Black workers in particular had little recourse against Jim Crow laws that forced them to work for low wages. In this anti-labor climate, unions were weak and strikes became extremely rare.

Great Depression Causes

There were many factors that caused the Great Depression, but Sicilia argues that the stock market crash of 1929 was not one of the major ones. Instead, he says, the major drivers were more complex. One of the main factors was the government's adherence to the gold standard. Another, he argues, was income inequality that had developed throughout the 1920s.

"With increased inequality, you have a much less stable economy because of the fact that the most stable component of GDP is essentially consumption," Stelzner says.

Many Americans tried to call attention to this inequality by arguing that "Coolidge prosperity" was a myth. "Prosperity to the extent that we have it is unduly concentrated and has not equitably touched the lives of the farmer, the wage earner and the individual businessman," said Al Smith when he accepted the Democratic nomination for president in 1928.

Smith lost the election to Herbert Hoover, who argued that Americans were experiencing prosperity. Soon after Hoover took office, the U.S. economy crashed.

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Why the Roaring Twenties Left Many Americans Poorer | HISTORY

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For some, the Great Depression began in the 1920s.

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Trailblazing Women of the 20s is part of 20sPeople - our season to mark the release of the 1921 Census, connecting the 1920s and the 2020s. Lisa Berry-Waite, our 1920s record specialist, tells the story of 10 women through 10 short videos. Lisa reveals how each individual, through their determination and resolve to defy contemporary expectations of women, influenced lasting change. To view their stories, click on the link or image below.

Mary Bailey

Female aviator and first woman to fly across the Irish Sea

Meet Mary, one of the greatest aviators of her time, and one of our 20 People of the 20s. Mary pushed the boundaries of expectations for women in the 1920s, remaining brave and steadfast despite the concerns of male politicians. Find out more here.

Helena Normanton

One of the first female barristers

Helena Normanton was a pioneering figure within the British legal profession during the 1920s. Another of our 20 People of the 20s, Helena led the way in fighting for women's rights to take up roles in the legal professions. Discover more about Helena's life and career here.

Eleanor Rathbone

Prominent feminist, social reformer and politician

As one of the first female MPs - alongside one of our 20 People of the 20s, Margaret Bondfield - Eleanor Rathbone was at the forefront of the fight for gender equality, as well as the push for improved social care. Uncover her story here.

Evelyn Dove

The trailblazing performer

One of our 20 People of the 20s, Evelyn was one of the few black British performers of the 1920s to achieve recognition from contemporaries, and achieved a number of firsts throughout her lifetime. Learn more about Evelyn here.

Megan Lloyd George

The first female MP for Wales

Despite initially being overshadowed by her father, former Prime Minister ing politician in her own right. She championed crucial issues of the period, such as unemployment; David Lloyd George, Megan became a trailblaz reveal more about Megan's career here.

Lilian Wyles

One of the first female police officers

Lilian and her colleagues helped to establish changes to policing in England. They were initially deemed unnecessary by many, including male colleagues who did not believe that women police officers were necessary. In fact, they did not even have the power to arrest when they took up their roles. They would go on to prove this a necessity, while emphatically disproving conceptions about female officers. Discover more about Lilian here.

Mary Hare

Pioneer of deaf education

Mary founded one of the first schools for the deaf. Now named the Mary Hare School in her honour, the school is still open to this day. In addition to her work in deaf education, Mary was also active in the campaign for women's suffrage. Find out more here.

Marie Stopes

Birth control campaigner

Marie Stopes was influential in the field of birth control, establishing Britain's first birth control clinic in 1921. She authored Married Love, in which she attempted to highlight the importance of good sexual relations between partners, and looked to break the taboo of discussing female sexual pleasure. Marie wrote several other books and a play on the subject of birth control and sexual relations. However, while Marie pioneered ways to discuss family planning and provided birth control to the general population, it's important to note that she also possessed some problematic views. Learn more here.

Elizabeth Andrews

Political activist and women's rights campaigner

Elizabeth campaigned on issues such as women's suffrage and public health. She was instrumental in improving the lives of miners and their families, particularly in the campaign for pithead baths - on-site facilities that prevented dirt being brought into homes from the colleries. Reveal Elizabeth's story here.

Lily Parr

Pioneer and all-time great of women's football

Lily was well-known during her playing career as a fantastic player who wowed crowds with her skill and powerful shooting ability. Lily was an outstanding player for the Dick, Kerr Ladies, the team founded by the Dick, Kerr & Co. factory; along with her teammates, she challenged stereotypes of what women were capable of, despite the Football Association's decision to ban women from playing on their grounds. Uncover Lily's story here.

View all 10 stories through our YouTube channel: The National Archives UK.

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Trailblazing Women of the 20s: 10 women who made history

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Trailblazing Women of the 20s is part of 20sPeople - our season to mark the release of the 1921 Census, connecting the 1920s and the 2020s. Lisa Berry-Waite, our 1920s record specialist, tells the story of 10 women through 10 short videos. Lisa reveals how each individual, through their determination and resolve to defy contemporary [...]

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Charleston, social jazz dance highly popular in the 1920s and frequently revived. Characterized by its toes-in, heels-out twisting steps, it was performed as a solo, with a partner, or in a group. Mentioned as early as 1903, it was originally a black folk dance known throughout the American South

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What Is the Charleston? Charleston Dance History

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Image Source Charleston, South Carolina, has a rich cultural history that dates back hundreds of years. Its earliest immigrants were English colonists; enslaved Africans (forced immigrants) soon followed. Since it was established in 1640, it has been home to French, Germans, Irish, and Scottish imm…

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1920s dances featuring the Charleston, the Peabody, Turkey Trot and more

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The Roaring 20's: Crash Course US History #32

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The Roaring Twenties Explained in 11 minutes

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SCSU Hilton C. Buley Library: United States History - Primary Resources: Roaring 20’s 1920-1929

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SCSU Hilton C. Buley Library: United States History - Primary Resources: Roaring 20’s 1920-1929