1920s
1. 18th Amendment
Key Point: This amendment, ratified in 1919, prohibited the manufacture, sale, and transportation of alcoholic beverages in the United States (Prohibition).
2. 19th Amendment
Key Point: Ratified in 1920, this amendment granted women the right to vote, marking a major milestone in the women's suffrage movement.
3. Al Smith
Key Point: A Democratic politician and the first Roman Catholic to run for president in 1928. Smith lost the election to Herbert Hoover but was a significant figure in American politics.
4. Calvin Coolidge
Key Point: The 30th President of the United States (1923–1929). Known for his pro-business policies, low taxes, and a "laissez-faire" approach to government.
5. Charles Lindbergh - Spirit of St Louis
Key Point: An American aviator who made the first solo nonstop transatlantic flight in 1927 in his plane, the Spirit of St. Louis, from New York to Paris.
6. Edward Hopper
Key Point: Famous American painter known for his realist depictions of urban and rural scenes, especially his iconic painting Nighthawks (1942).
7. Election of 1928
Key Point: The presidential election where Herbert Hoover (Republican) defeated Al Smith (Democrat). Smith's Catholicism and stance on Prohibition were significant issues in the campaign.
8. Emergency Quota Acts
Key Point: The Immigration Act of 1921 and 1924 set strict quotas on immigration, particularly targeting Southern and Eastern Europeans, limiting the number of immigrants allowed into the U.S.
9. Flappers
Key Point: Young women in the 1920s who embraced new fashions and behaviors, rejecting traditional norms. They were known for their bobbed hair, short skirts, and independent lifestyles.
10. Ford Model T
Key Point: Introduced by Henry Ford in 1908, the Model T revolutionized the automobile industry by making cars affordable to the general public, largely due to mass production techniques.
11. Georgia O'Keeffe
Key Point: An American modernist artist known for her large-scale paintings of flowers, skyscrapers, and New Mexico landscapes.
12. Harlem Renaissance
Key Point: A cultural movement in the 1920s centered in Harlem, New York, marked by a flourishing of African American art, literature, music, and intellectualism, with figures like Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston, and Louis Armstrong.
13. Herbert Hoover
Key Point: The 31st President of the United States (1929–1933). He faced the beginning of the Great Depression, which significantly impacted his presidency.
14. Jazz
Key Point: A genre of music that became wildly popular in the 1920s, deeply associated with the Harlem Renaissance. Key figures included Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, and Bessie Smith.
15. Kellogg-Briand Pact
Key Point: Signed in 1928, this agreement between 15 nations condemned war as a means of resolving international disputes, though it lacked enforcement provisions.
16. KKK Goals and Activities
Key Point: The Ku Klux Klan in the 1920s was focused on white supremacy, anti-immigrant sentiment, and maintaining "traditional" American values. They engaged in violent activities against African Americans, Jews, Catholics, and immigrants.
17. Louis Armstrong
Key Point: A jazz musician and one of the most influential figures in jazz history, known for his virtuoso trumpet playing and unique voice.
18. Mitchell Palmer
Key Point: U.S. Attorney General during the Red Scare (1919-1920), responsible for the Palmer Raids, which targeted suspected radicals and led to mass deportations.
19. Prohibition
Key Point: The period (1920-1933) when the 18th Amendment banned alcohol, leading to the rise of speakeasies, bootlegging, and organized crime.
20. Red Scare - Decline in Organized Labor, Sacco and Vanzetti, Palmer Raids
Key Point: The Red Scare of the 1920s was a time of fear of communism and radical political movements. This period saw a decline in organized labor and the controversial trial and execution of two Italian anarchists, Sacco and Vanzetti.
21. Return to Normalcy – Laissez-Faire, Tariffs, and Taxes
Key Point: A slogan used by Warren G. Harding during his 1920 campaign, promising a return to pre-WWI normalcy. It emphasized limited government intervention in business (laissez-faire), tax cuts, and high protective tariffs.
22. Scopes Trial - Clarence Darrow, John Scopes, William Jennings Bryan
Key Point: The 1925 trial that debated the teaching of evolution in public schools. John Scopes, a teacher, was tried for teaching Darwin’s theory of evolution, defended by Clarence Darrow. William Jennings Bryan, a three-time presidential candidate, represented the prosecution.
23. Speakeasies
Key Point: Illegal bars or clubs that operated during Prohibition, where alcohol was secretly sold and consumed.
24. Teapot Dome Scandal
Key Point: A 1920s political scandal involving the secret leasing of federal oil reserves to private companies, leading to the conviction of Secretary of the Interior Albert Fall.
25. Tulsa Race Massacre
Key Point: A violent attack on the Black community in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in 1921, when white residents destroyed the prosperous Black Wall Street neighborhood, killing hundreds of African Americans.
26. Unilateral Internationalism
Key Point: A foreign policy approach adopted by the U.S. in the 1920s, emphasizing the pursuit of American interests abroad without forming formal alliances or committing to international organizations.
27. Warren G. Harding
Key Point: The 29th President of the United States (1921-1923), whose administration was marred by scandals like Teapot Dome. He campaigned for a "return to normalcy."
28. Washington Conference 1921
Key Point: A meeting of world powers to discuss naval disarmament and East Asian policies. It resulted in the Washington Naval Treaty, which aimed to limit the construction of warships and promote peace.