THE PEOPLE HISTORY

Popular Culture 1920'S

Due to the new technology available allowing movies to have both sound and color, the movie industry in Hollywood grew fast, as did the number of Cinemas showing the films. In 1919, laws were passed for the Prohibition of the consumption and even possession of alcohol, making it illegal . Due to these laws, the Decade provided some of the best known gangsters a means to create vast wealth by opening illegal bars called speakeasies that would provide alcoholic drinks for the people that patronized these establishments. The most well known gangster of the time was possibly Al Capone.
Also this period saw the growth of the Ku Klux Klan and the growth of the Vigilante groups who took the law into their own hands and lynched victims most often black without any trial.
The other great change in people's lives came from an invention and technology developed prior to the twenties. After World War I, the birth of commercial radio helped the radio to became a significant part of life providing news and entertainment to the masses in their homes.

Fashions During the twenties, men's fashions became less stuffy and they tried to look more youthful but women's fashions changed much more drastically. Women started dressing in a way they felt comfortable, not to accentuate the feminine attributes, but as a statement of who they were (flapper style of clothing). These three examples which include Flapper Style Women's Fashions are from Our new updated 1920s Fashion Section, We have included over 200 examples of Ladies, Mens and Children's Fashion Clothes and Accessory examples organized by year including dresses, hats, shoes and much more take a little time to browse through them.

Toys Check out the new toys pages where you can see some of the children's toys that could be found during the Roaring Twenties and other decades. Toys include Teddy Bears, Velocipedes, Tinker Toys, Gyroscopes, and Magic Lanterns. From Our Twenties Toys Page

Below are some examples of kids pedal cars, you will notice from the advert below the toy pedal car makers were quick to mimic the cars of the period Price: From $10.95

Electrical Home Goods The range of things you could own was low because the vast number of Americans still did not have electricity, Below is one great example from our Electrical page featuring a radio, as I did the research I was amazed at the complexity involved in owning a radio for your home. All the items shown below were required to own a radio, more information on this and other items can be found on our From Our Twenties Electrical Appliances Page

Your Radio Itself Price: From $75,00

Parts To Make your Radio Antenna  Price: $2.75

Your Radio Also Needed A Speaker or You Could Use a Pair of Headphones  Price: $8.95

Battery Charger and Battery Price: $20.00

Cars Possibly the most significant change during the decade was the mass production of the Car started by Henry Ford in the early 1900's. He had manufactured and sold some 15 million Model-Ts by 1927. I have included 20 examples of cars for sale in the decade From Our Twenties Autos Page

1924 Chevrolet Utility Coupe

1928 Chrysler 75 Roadster

Homes From The Twenties Our new updated Homes page includes a number of self build homes with varying designs and sizes ranging from a small cottage to a two floor large 7 room house the examples below are taken from our Homes and Houses Page

Two Bedroom Country Cottage Price: Sectional $2,205

Sear Catalog Honor Bilt Gladstone featuring 6 rooms and a bath home Price: Ready Cut $2,025

Furniture From The 20'S It is interesting looking at the furniture and fixtures you might find in a home from the decade, below are just two examples I found interesting from the more than 20 we have included on our Furniture Page

Portable Bathtub With Water Heater

Late Twenties Oil Wick Cooking Stove

Music Jazz was the music of popular choice and some of the best known musicians were jazz musicians including Duke Ellington and Al Jolson. One other popular musician/composer was George Gershwin. Many of his songs are still recorded and listened to today. A popular dance of the times was known as the Charleston.

The 1920'S

The Twenties were a time of radical change caused by the many changes happening in technology with new advancements, discoveries, and inventions. The decade is often referred to as the Roaring Twenties.

Money And Inflation

To provide an estimate we have given a guide to the value of $100 US Dollars for the first year in the decade to the equivalent in today's money
If you have $100 Converted from 1920 to 2009 it would be equivalent to $1023 in today's money
Food Prices From The 1920's 

Events

At the end of the 20's after a time of excesses in all areas, the stock market crashed on Black Thursday (October 24th, 1929) and caused the start of the The Great Depression.

Sporting Changes During The Decade

Baseball
The Yankees and Babe Ruth rule the world of Baseball setting records for the team and the Great Babe Ruth.
Major League Teams Buy up Minor League Teams allowing them to get top players much cheaper than the open market.
Association Football (Soccer)
Soccer had been gaining in popularity since the mid 1800's but the Twenties gave an even bigger boost with the Growth Of Radio In Britain making the top players into stars.
For More Sporting history, Origins, Events and Changes, Please Check Out Our New Sports History Section. 

Technology

There were many inventions and new types of technology developed during the 20's, but possibly the one that had the greatest impact before the turn of the next decade was Radio. It soon became a staple of peoples lives providing entertainment, news, and new ideas. Another very important invention also started to impact peoples lives and that was the uses of airplanes apart from as a weapon of war. Air Mail would provide some of the impetus and investment needed to improve stability and provide a practical use, as a byproduct the airplane became used as a means for entertainment with stunts at Fairs. Man also realized he could push the bounds by attempting previously un-thought of ideas. A good example is Charles A. Lindbergh crossing the Atlantic Ocean by himself in an airplane.
It was during the 20's that automatic vending machines began to appear to dispense soft drinks.

Inventions -- The Year Invented, Inventors, and Country (or attributed to First Use)

Aerosol Sprays ----- 1926 Norway by Erik Rotheim
Antibiotic Penicillin ----- 1928 England by Alexander Fleming
Frozen Food ----- 1924 USA by Clarence Birdseye
Handheld Hair Dryer ----- 1920 USA by Hamilton Beach Co.
Vacuum Tube Hearing Aid ----- 1921 USA by Earl Hanson
Iron Lung ----- 1928 USA by Philip Drinker
Liquid Fuel Rocket ----- 1926 USA by Robert Goddard
Quartz Clock ----- 1927 USA by Warren Marrison
Adhesive Bandages ----- 1920 USA by Earle Dickson
Talking Pictures ----- 1927 USA
Television ----- 1924 Scotland by John Logie Baird
Ultracentrifuge (Separates Proteins) ----- 1923 Sweden by The Svedberg
Videophone ----- 1927 USA
Electric Razor ----- 1927 USA by Jacob Schick

Period Leading Up To The Decade

You can not talk about the decade without mentioning "The Great Pandemic" from 1918-1919. This influenza epidemic (also known as the Spanish Flu) was a global catastrophe which is believed to have caused the death of over 40 million people worldwide. This is one of the main reasons governments round the world are still so concerned with "Bird Flu" and other largescale influenza outbreaks.