The Interstate Commerce Commission assumed regulation of telegraph and telephone communications.
In New York City, St. Patrick's Cathedral was consecrated and Pennsylvania Station was
opened.
The Boy Scouts Organization of America was founded.
The Christian Endeavor Group and other organizations sought censorship of all motion pictures
which contained kissing.
Opera great Enrico Caruso's voice was recorded singing Ruggero Leoncavallo's No! Pagliaccio
Non Son.
1911
22,000 U.S. troops protected Americans along the Mexican border from the nearby battles of the
Mexican Revolution.
Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens) died April 21st at age 75.
John Philip Sousa's 100-piece band finished a two-year tour of the world, which helped
popularize American marching music.
Irving Berlin's Alexander's Ragtime Band reflected ragtime's 10-year emergence as an
American music genre.
1912
New Mexico became America's 47th state; Arizona the 48th.
The Girl Scouts of the United States of America was chartered.
The Cadillac division of General Motors introduced the battery-powered ignition with the "electrical
car starter."
In a three-way presidential race, former president and Progressive Party candidate Theodore
Roosevelt's Square Deal Campaign overshadowed President Taft's re-election bid, giving a
landslide victory to Democrat Woodrow Wilson.
1,500 perished when the Titanic struck an iceberg and sank during its maiden voyage.
Native American Jim Thorpe became the known as the world's best athlete at the Olympics in
Stockholm, but was stripped of all his honors when it was discovered he played professional
baseball in 1909.
1913
Over 400 died in The Dayton Flood along the Miami River in Ohio.
President Woodrow Wilson made unwittingly condescending remarks to the Native Americans
while dedicating the Indian head nickel. A bison from the New York Zoo was the model for the
reverse side of the coin.
In Pennsylvania, veterans of the Union & Confederate Armies gathered to commemorate the 50th
anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg.
The first 4-reel (60-minute) film — France's Queen Elizabeth, starring Sarah Bernhardt — gave the
movie industry further dramatic credibility.
Douglas Fairbanks made his U.S. film debut in a 2-reeler.
1914
U.S. forces occupied Vera Cruz, Mexico as the U.S. demanded an official apology for the arrest
of U.S. Marines at Tampico. The occupation ended with the resignation of Mexican president
Victoriano Huerta.
The Federal Trade Commission and the Panama Canal Zone were established.
42 of the 48 states ratified the 16th Amendment and Americans began paying income tax.
Marie Dressler & Charlie Chaplin starred in Tillie's Punctured Romance, the first 6-reel (90-minute) film, produced by Mack Sennett Studios.
Popular songs included Fido Is A Hot Dog Now and W.C. Handy's St. Louis Blues.
1915
The human voice, instead of morse code, was transmitted between Arlington, Virginia and the
Eiffel Tower in Paris, in the first international "radiotelephone" communication.
Americans' hostilities toward the Germans began to build after a German sub sank the U.K.'s
passenger ship The Lusitania, killing 1,198 persons, including 114 Americans and 64 babies. The
Secret Service arrested dozens of German-Americans when they discovered a spy & propaganda
ring operating out of the Hamburg-American Steam Line.
Alexander Graham Bell and Thomas Watson reenacted their historic first phone call from 1876 ...
only this time they were 3,100 miles apart. Bell said, "Mr. Watson, come here, I want you" from
New York as Watson listened in San Francisco, in a ceremony marking the first transcontinental
telephone communication.
26,500 women marched for suffrage in New York City.
The Victor Talking Machine Company refined Edison's phonograph into its Victrola, with built-in
horn speaker and finished wooden encasement. Americans adopted the term "Victrola" to
describe record players.
The year's most popular song spelled out the word M-O-T-H-E-R.
1916
Poncho Villa led his rebels in an attack on Columbus, New Mexico, killing 17 Americans.
Despite warnings from the Mexican government, U.S. troops were sent into Mexico to bring Villa
to justice. Their year-long search for Villa was fruitless.
South Carolina raised the minimum age for coal mine workers from 12 to 14.
Labor leaders Tom Mooney and Warren Billings were charged with a terrorist explosion that
killed 10 and injured 41 at a Preparedness Day parade in San Francisco. They would later be
pardoned due to perjured testimony.
President Wilson was re-elected, narrowly defeating Charles Evans Hughs.
The Dixieland Jass Band (jazz was often spelled jass at the time) toured the U.S.
Victor Records enjoyed success from releasing recorded skits by Vaudeville comedians like Barney Bernard.
1917
British intelligence uncovered Germany's plans to form an alliance with Mexico against the U.S.
As a German submarine sank the U.S. liner Housatonic, all diplomatic relations with Germany
were severed. The first U.S. troops were sent to Europe in June.
Former U.S. Ambassador to Germany James Watson toured the country, explaining Germany's
threat to Europe and the U.S.
Puerto Rico became a U.S. territory.
Republican Jeanette Rankin of Montana became the first woman in the U.S. House.
Women's suffrage became law in New York state.
The Selective Service Act required all men aged 21 to 30 to register for the drafting into the U.S.
military.
1918
The allied forces took back Bellau Wood, France from the Germans in a battle that cost the lives
of 285 American officers and 7,600 enlisted men. General J.J. Pershing, known admiringly as
"Black Jack," addressed French officials.
The World War ended in the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month.
A coal shortage forced the closure of all Broadway theaters from February through April.
Edison Records released a popular series of novelty recordings, including mimmick John Orren's impersonations of an orchestra tuning, chickens singing and a saw mill.
The war influenced popular music. Hit songs included Would You Rather Be A Colonel
With An Eagle On Your Shoulder Or A Private With A Chicken On Your Knee?, I'd Like To See
The Kaiser With A Lily In His Hand, and General Pershing Will Cross The Rhine.
1919
After a 5-month conference, the World Peace Treaty was signed.
The U.S. Post Office issued a purple 3¢ victory stamp.
Henry Ford sued the Chicago Tribune for implying he was an anarchist. After months in court,
Ford was awarded damages of 6¢.
Congress overrode President Wilson's veto and passed the National Prohibition Act.
The American Legion was founded in Paris.
President Wilson, who had been suffering from "brain fog" on an exhausting speaking tour,
suffered a debilitating stroke near Wichita, Kansas on September 27th.
Mae West debuted on a New York stage in the musical Sometime.
With the country relaxing after an exhaustive war effort, Sgt. Irving Berlin's Oh, How I Hate To
Get Up In The Morning was one of the year's most popular songs.
