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20th Century

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Events

20th Century Timeline

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1920

Civil Rights 20th Century North America

19th Amendment Certified for Women's Suffrage

The movement for women's voting rights in the United States gained momentum after decades of activism, with the amendment first proposed in Congress in 1878. After passage by Congress in 1919, ratification required approval by three-fourths of the states. Tennessee provided the decisive 36th ratification on August 18, 1920. Secretary of State Bainbridge Colby certified the amendment on August 26, 1920, formally adding it to the Constitution. The new provision prohibited denial of voting rights on account of sex. Millions of American women gained the franchise overnight, fundamentally altering the electorate.

Event Detail America 250 Atlas

1920

Disaster 20th Century North America

Bomb Detonates on Wall Street During Lunch Hour

The years after World War I brought labor strikes, anarchist bombings, and the First Red Scare to the United States, heightening tensions around radical political movements. On September 16, 1920, a horse-drawn wagon carrying approximately 100 pounds of explosives and metal fragments exploded at noon in front of the J.P. Morgan & Co. building on Wall Street. The blast killed 38 people, mostly clerical workers and messengers, and injured more than 300 others. Investigators attributed the attack to anarchist groups, though no perpetrators were ever convicted. The bombing remains one of the deadliest terrorist incidents in U.S. history prior to the twenty-first century.

Event Detail America 250 Atlas

1921

Civil Rights 20th Century North America

Tulsa Race Massacre Destroys Greenwood District

Tulsa's Greenwood neighborhood had become one of the most prosperous Black communities in the United States by the early 1920s. On May 31 a confrontation at the county courthouse involving a Black teenager accused of assaulting a white woman quickly escalated into armed clashes. White mobs, some deputized by local authorities, invaded Greenwood the following night. They burned homes and businesses, looted property, and killed residents. Estimates of Black fatalities range from dozens to several hundred, with the neighborhood left in ruins. State and local officials largely failed to prosecute perpetrators or provide meaningful reconstruction aid.

Event Detail America 250 Atlas

1921

Military 20th Century Middle East & North Africa

Spanish Forces Routed at Annual in Rif War

Spain's colonial efforts in northern Morocco faced growing resistance from Rif Berber tribes led by Abd el-Krim in the early 1920s. General Manuel Fernández Silvestre advanced Spanish positions toward the Rif heartland, stretching supply lines thin across rugged terrain. On July 22, 1921, Riffian forces attacked the forward camp at Annual, overwhelming the garrison after earlier setbacks at nearby outposts. The Spanish retreat quickly turned into a disorganized rout as pursuing tribesmen exploited the chaos, leading to heavy casualties over the following days. Silvestre disappeared during the fighting, and Spanish forces lost control of most territory gained since 1909. The disaster became known in Spain as the "Disaster of Annual."

Event Detail US Military Atlas

1922

Science 20th Century North America

First Successful Insulin Treatment for Diabetes

In the early 1920s, Type 1 diabetes remained a fatal condition with only strict starvation diets offering limited extension of life. Researchers Frederick Banting, Charles Best, and James Collip at the University of Toronto had isolated insulin from pancreatic extracts after years of experimentation. On January 11, 1922, 14-year-old Leonard Thompson, critically ill and weighing about 65 pounds, received the first human injection of insulin at Toronto General Hospital. The initial dose caused an allergic reaction due to impurities, but a refined preparation administered on January 23 dramatically stabilized his blood sugar. Thompson's survival and recovery demonstrated insulin's potential, leading the university to license production royalty-free to pharmaceutical companies.

Event Detail

1922

Culture 20th Century Europe

James Joyce's Ulysses Published in Paris

Irish author James Joyce had labored for years on his experimental novel Ulysses, drawing from Homer's Odyssey to chronicle one day in Dublin through stream-of-consciousness techniques and linguistic innovation. Facing censorship and publication hurdles in Britain and the United States due to its content, Joyce turned to Sylvia Beach's Shakespeare and Company bookstore in Paris. On February 2, 1922—Joyce's 40th birthday—the complete novel appeared in a limited first edition of about 1,000 copies. The work immediately sparked controversy and admiration among literary circles for its modernist style and depth. Beach's courageous decision to publish it helped establish Joyce as a central figure in 20th-century literature.

Event Detail Free Speech Atlas

1922

Culture 20th Century North America

Lincoln Memorial Dedicated on Memorial Day

Construction of the Lincoln Memorial began in 1914 on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., designed by architect Henry Bacon in a neoclassical style modeled after a Greek temple, with a 19-foot marble statue of Abraham Lincoln by Daniel Chester French inside. The project honored the 16th president and the preservation of the Union after the Civil War, featuring inscriptions of the Gettysburg Address and Second Inaugural Address. Chief Justice and former President William Howard Taft led the dedication ceremony on May 30, 1922, attended by President Warren G. Harding, Lincoln's son Robert Todd Lincoln, and an estimated 50,000 people. The event occurred on what was then Decoration Day, now Memorial Day, and included speeches emphasizing Lincoln's virtues of tolerance...

Event Detail America 250 Atlas

1922

Exploration 20th Century Middle East & North Africa

Howard Carter Discovers Tutankhamun Tomb Steps

In the early 20th century, British archaeologist Howard Carter had spent years excavating in Egypt's Valley of the Kings under the patronage of Lord Carnarvon, seeking royal tombs that had largely escaped ancient looters. By late 1922, after clearing debris near earlier finds, a worker's tool struck a stone step on November 4. Further digging revealed a staircase leading to a sealed doorway marked with Tutankhamun's name. Carter and his team proceeded methodically, later confirming on November 26 the presence of an intact burial chamber filled with thousands of artifacts. The discovery astonished the world as one of the few nearly complete pharaonic tombs ever found.

Event Detail Peopling Earth

1922

Exploration 20th Century Middle East & North Africa

Howard Carter Enters Tutankhamun's Tomb

After years of fruitless searches in Egypt's Valley of the Kings funded by Lord Carnarvon, British archaeologist Howard Carter's team uncovered a sealed doorway on November 4, 1922. Clearing the passage revealed steps leading to an intact tomb entrance. On November 26, Carter, Carnarvon, and colleagues made a small breach and peered inside by candlelight, beholding a chamber filled with golden treasures, statues, and artifacts belonging to Pharaoh Tutankhamun. The find confirmed the burial site's location after initial doubts. Immediate excitement spread as word reached the press, drawing international attention to the discovery.

Event Detail Peopling Earth

1922

Politics 20th Century Russia & Central Asia

Union of Soviet Socialist Republics Formed

After the Russian Revolution and Civil War, Bolshevik leaders sought to consolidate power among the various Soviet republics that had emerged from the former Russian Empire. Negotiations produced the Treaty on the Creation of the USSR and a Declaration of the Creation of the USSR. On December 30, 1922, the First All-Union Congress of Soviets in Moscow formally ratified the documents, uniting the Russian SFSR, Ukrainian SSR, Byelorussian SSR, and Transcaucasian SFSR into a single federal state under Communist Party control. Vladimir Lenin, though ill, supported the structure, while Joseph Stalin played a key role in its organization. The new entity established a centralized government with Moscow as capital.

Event Detail

1923

Exploration 20th Century Middle East & North Africa

Howard Carter Opens Tutankhamun's Burial Chamber

British archaeologist Howard Carter had spent years searching Egypt's Valley of the Kings for intact royal tombs. In November 1922 his team discovered the entrance to a previously unknown tomb belonging to the little-known pharaoh Tutankhamun. After clearing the antechamber and other rooms over several months, Carter, accompanied by Lord Carnarvon and Egyptian officials, unsealed the burial chamber on February 16, 1923. Inside lay an undisturbed sarcophagus containing the mummified remains of the young king, surrounded by extraordinary treasures including gold artifacts, furniture, and chariots untouched for over 3,000 years. The discovery captivated the world and provided unprecedented insight into New Kingdom burial practices.

Event Detail Peopling Earth

1923

Culture 20th Century North America

Time Magazine Publishes Its Inaugural Issue

Journalists Briton Hadden and Henry Luce, former Yale Daily News colleagues, launched a new weekly news magazine aimed at busy readers seeking concise summaries of current events. The first issue of Time, dated March 3, 1923, featured Speaker of the House Joseph G. Cannon on the cover and organized content into departments covering national and international affairs. Lacking the later iconic red border, the 32-page publication emphasized brevity and systematic coverage of politics, business, and culture. It quickly gained traction as the first successful weekly news magazine in the United States. The venture reflected the growing demand for synthesized information in the Roaring Twenties media landscape.

Event Detail America 250 Atlas

1923

Disaster 20th Century East Asia

Great Kantō Earthquake Strikes Japan

Japan in the early 1920s was recovering from World War I and undergoing rapid urbanization and industrialization. The Kantō Plain, home to Tokyo and Yokohama, sat atop a seismically active zone where tectonic plates converge. At 11:58 a.m. on September 1, a magnitude 7.9 earthquake struck near noon, just as many residents prepared lunch over open flames. The initial shaking collapsed buildings across the region, and subsequent fires, fueled by high winds from a passing typhoon and broken water mains, raged for days. Over 140,000 people died, mostly from the fires, and more than a million were left homeless in one of the deadliest natural disasters in Japanese history.

Event Detail Disaster Kit Pro

1923

Politics 20th Century Middle East & North Africa

Republic of Turkey Proclaimed in Ankara

Following the Turkish War of Independence and the abolition of the Ottoman sultanate in 1922, the Grand National Assembly in Ankara governed a nascent state amid cabinet instability and debates over governance structure. Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, leader of the nationalist movement, orchestrated a constitutional crisis by prompting the resignation of the executive committee, then proposed amendments declaring the form of government a republic with sovereignty vested in the nation. On October 29, 1923, the assembly unanimously approved the changes in a dramatic session, electing Atatürk as the first president and İsmet Pasha as prime minister. This act formally ended centuries of monarchical rule and initiated Atatürk's sweeping reforms toward secularism and modernization. The proclamation established Ankara as the capital and...

Event Detail

1923

Politics 20th Century Europe

Hitler Launches Beer Hall Putsch in Munich

Following World War I defeat and economic turmoil in the Weimar Republic, Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party sought to overthrow the Bavarian government as a step toward national power. On the evening of November 8, 1923, Hitler and supporters stormed a Munich beer hall where Bavarian leaders were meeting, declaring a revolution and forcing them at gunpoint to support a march on Berlin. Erich Ludendorff lent his prestige to the effort. The next day the putsch collapsed amid clashes with police, with 16 Nazis and four officers killed. Hitler was arrested soon after.

Event Detail

1924

Exploration 20th Century Middle East & North Africa

Howard Carter Uncovers Tutankhamun Sarcophagus

British archaeologist Howard Carter had discovered the intact tomb of Pharaoh Tutankhamun in the Valley of the Kings in November 1922, but clearing the antechambers took over a year amid intense public interest. On January 3, 1924, Carter and his team finally raised the lid of the massive quartzite sarcophagus inside the burial chamber. Inside lay nested coffins, the innermost of solid gold containing the mummified remains of the young king, surrounded by elaborate funerary treasures. The find astonished the world and provided an unprecedented glimpse into New Kingdom Egyptian burial practices. Excavation and conservation continued for years under Egyptian government oversight.

Event Detail

1924

Politics 20th Century Russia & Central Asia

Vladimir Lenin Dies, Triggering Soviet Power Struggle

Vladimir Lenin, architect of the Bolshevik Revolution and first leader of Soviet Russia, had suffered debilitating strokes since 1922 that limited his active role. On January 21, 1924, he died at age 53 in Gorki from complications of a cerebral hemorrhage. His death came at a critical juncture as the Soviet Union consolidated power after the Russian Civil War. Lenin's passing opened intense rivalries among Bolshevik leaders, particularly between Leon Trotsky and Joseph Stalin. The event ended the revolutionary era's dominant figure and set the stage for Stalin's eventual dominance.

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1924

Culture 20th Century Europe

First Winter Olympic Games Open in Chamonix

The International Olympic Committee had long focused on summer sports, but Nordic countries pushed for winter competitions featuring skiing and skating. The 1924 Games in Chamonix, France, opened on January 25 as a separate winter festival attached to the Paris Summer Olympics. Athletes from 16 nations competed in 16 events across six sports despite challenging Alpine weather. The event included the debut of bobsleigh and featured strong performances from Scandinavian teams. Organizers treated it as an experiment that proved popular with spectators and athletes alike. The success led the IOC to establish permanent Winter Olympics.

Event Detail

1924

Politics 20th Century Middle East & North Africa

Ottoman Caliphate Abolished by Turkish Republic

After the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire following World War I and the rise of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk's nationalist movement, the Turkish Grand National Assembly moved to eliminate remaining monarchical and religious institutions. On March 3, 1924, the Assembly deposed Caliph Abdülmecid II, the last holder of the Ottoman Caliphate title that had symbolized Islamic leadership since the 16th century. This action completed the secular reforms begun with the abolition of the sultanate two years earlier. The decision transferred religious authority away from the state and aligned Turkey with modern republican governance. It marked the end of a centuries-old Islamic political institution.

Event Detail

1924

Civil Rights 20th Century North America

U.S. Grants Citizenship to Native Americans

Native Americans had long held a complex legal status, often treated as members of sovereign tribes rather than U.S. citizens despite centuries of interaction and conflict with federal authorities. Thousands of Native men had served in World War I, highlighting the inconsistency of their non-citizen status. Representative Homer P. Snyder introduced legislation to address this. On June 2, 1924, President Calvin Coolidge signed the Indian Citizenship Act, conferring U.S. citizenship on all Native Americans born within the territorial limits of the United States. The law did not automatically grant voting rights, which remained subject to state laws, nor did it dissolve tribal sovereignty or treaty obligations.

Event Detail America 250 Atlas

1925

Civil Rights 20th Century East Asia

May Thirtieth Incident Sparks Chinese Protests

Tensions in Shanghai's International Settlement rose amid labor strikes at Japanese-owned mills and anti-foreign sentiment fueled by unequal treaties and foreign control of Chinese territory. On May 30, 1925, thousands of students, workers, and protesters marched on Nanjing Road demanding the release of arrested demonstrators and an end to foreign privileges. Shanghai Municipal Police, including British officers, confronted the crowd outside a police station; after warnings, they opened fire, killing at least 11 immediately and wounding dozens more, with some later dying from injuries. The shootings, known as the Nanjing Road incident, triggered immediate outrage across China, leading to nationwide strikes, boycotts of foreign goods, and demonstrations that lasted months. The Chinese Communist Party capitalized on the anti-imperialist wave, significantly...

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1925

Culture 20th Century Europe

Hitler Publishes First Volume of Mein Kampf

Following the failed Beer Hall Putsch in 1923, Adolf Hitler was imprisoned in Landsberg Prison where he dictated his political manifesto to associates including Rudolf Hess. On July 18, 1925, the first volume of Mein Kampf (My Struggle) was published by a small Munich press, outlining Hitler's antisemitic ideology, his vision for German expansion, and critiques of the Weimar Republic and Marxism. The book combined autobiography with political program, arguing for racial purity and the need for Lebensraum in the East. Initial sales were modest, but it gained traction among Nazi supporters and was later required reading in Germany after 1933. The publication marked an early step in codifying the ideas that would drive Nazi policy.

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1925

Law 20th Century North America

Scopes Monkey Trial Ends with Guilty Verdict

In the 1920s, tensions between religious fundamentalism and modern science ran high in parts of the United States, leading Tennessee to pass the Butler Act in March 1925 prohibiting the teaching of human evolution in public schools. Local businessman George Rappleyea in Dayton, Tennessee, recruited high school teacher John T. Scopes to test the law deliberately as a way to bring attention and economic benefit to the small town. The resulting trial, pitting defense attorney Clarence Darrow against prosecutor William Jennings Bryan, drew massive national media coverage and featured dramatic testimony including Bryan's cross-examination on biblical interpretation. On July 21, 1925, after eight days of proceedings, the jury deliberated for just nine minutes before finding Scopes guilty of violating the...

Event Detail America 250 Atlas

1926

Technology 20th Century North America

Goddard Launches World's First Liquid-Fueled Rocket

In the early twentieth century, American physicist Robert H. Goddard pursued rocket propulsion theories while most dismissed space travel as fantasy. After years of experiments with solid fuels and mathematical modeling, Goddard shifted to liquid propellants for greater efficiency and control. On March 16, 1926, at his aunt's farm in Auburn, Massachusetts, he successfully launched a 10-foot rocket powered by liquid oxygen and gasoline. The modest flight lasted 2.5 seconds, reached 41 feet in altitude, and traveled 184 feet. Though initially met with skepticism, the test proved liquid-fuel rocketry viable and opened pathways for future aerospace development.

Event Detail America 250 Atlas