LHA History Society presents

The links below can help one gather great insight and information on the decade of the 1920's. This decade was indeed very special. It introduced new forms of music, literature, and fashion. It added new words to the English language. To many it was a time of unbridled prosperity; to others a time of chaos. Come visit the decade.

By the end of the journey, you should know the meanings of the following terms:

• fascism
• hedonism
• proletariat
• rum runner
• speakeasy

By the end of the quest, one should have some understanding of the various nicknames associated with the Twenties, such as:

• The Babe
• The Galloping Ghost
• The Jazz Age
• The Lawless Decade
• The Roaring Twenties
• Silent Cal

World War One and the Treaty of Versailles both set the stage for the decade of the Twenties.

A lecture on the Legacy of Versailles by Professor Gerhard Rempel, Western New England College

The following sites deal with the general themes of this decade in the United States

• Lawless Decade: A Pictorial History of the Twenties Site contains a year by year account of this decade in American history. Pictures and music with information on Prohibition, flappers, Murders Row, Lucky Lindy, Valentino, and more. Great musical accompaniment!
• Twenties Reconstruction Society Reports from members on topics such as the effects of World War One, Prohibition, the automobile, politics, gangland activties, the cinema. Contains a list of sources. This site attempts to recreate the 1920s. .
• THE 1920's Site contains a timeline with almost day-by-day account of the decade. Information on the arts, news and politics, sports, society and fads. Photos.
• Texas Guinan's Speakeasy An eclectic look at life in the Jazz Age. Contains poetry and prose, music. A virtual walk through the spirit of the times.
• American Culture in the 1920s Student project at James Madison College, Michigan State University. Student essays on such topics as the Palmer raids, the Ku Klux Klan, Sacco and Vanzetti, the Scopes Monkey Trial. With list of sources.
• American Cultural History: 1920-1929 A wealth of resources, links, guide to books, on the decade. Special attention to literature, fads and fashion, and music. Might be a bit overwhelming, but well worth the time and patience to absorb it all. Good old photos.
• The Roaring Twenties Contains Art, fashion, & 78 RPM recording on Real Audio. Maintained by Alex Hajnal. Recent site.

The Presidents of the United States were all Republicans during this decade

• Warren G. Harding 1921-21
• Calvin Coolidge, 1923-29
• Herbet Hoover, 1929-33

Some think of the Twenties as a time of unbridled prosperity. But this prosperity brought with it demands for change. Henry Ford helped change the way people travel. Radio brought music, news, and sports into the living rooms of many people. By late 1929, however, things changed drastically for the worst.

• Prosperity and Thrift: The Coolidge Era and the Consumer Economy, 1921-1929 A source for understanding the U. S. economy during the decade.. A wide array of Library of Congress source materials from the 1920s that documents the widespread prosperity of the Coolidge years, the nation's transition to a mass consumer economy, and the role of government in this transition.
• The Radio Timeline features old photos and diagrams, and documents the important dates in the history of radio.
• Margaret Sanger of the Twenties Articles by college students of James Madison College at Michigan State University which give an account of her crusade for birth control. Recordings of Sanger, links to other sites. Margaret Sanger and Mary Ware Dennett did not always see eye to eye on the direction of this movement.
• Women also played a role in the pacifist movement, as well as the suffragette movement.
• Black Thursday: October 24, 1929 Attempt to put the visitor through the roller coaster of late 1929 by following the economic headlines of the times. Identifies the major figures in the economic world. Leads to the Great Stock Market Crash. Last updated 1996.
• 1920s Experience A basic site with some information on the arts, entertainment, personalities, music, events, inventions, and fads.
• Gatsby's Jazz Age EchoesCelebration of the culture of the 1920s. Lighthearted, whimsical, fun.
• Roaring 1920s Concert Extravaganza Real Audio files of various performers include Al Jolson, Eddie Cantor, Ruth Etting and many others. Good listening!
• Crime Library: Bootlegger's Paradise A place to start investigating the bad guys of the Twenties.
• Advertising of Installment Plans During the 1920s On the topic, a bit technical and dry. From "Essays in History," written by Sharon Murphy.

Literature of the Twenties

• F. Scott Fitzgerald The Fitzgerald Centennary. A good place to start learning about F. Scott Fitzgerald, the author of The Great Gatsby.
• Sinclair Lewis, 1885-1951, wrote three major works in the 1920's: Main Street, Babbitt, and Arrowsmith. This site contains a brief biography of Lewis and synopsis of these novels.
• Harlem Renaissance From 1920 until about 1930 an unprecedented outburst of creative activity among African-Americans occurred in all fields of art. This site contains collections of poetry from Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Houston, Nella Larson and more. Also information on painters such as William H. Johnson, plus links to other sites on the period.
• Poets of the Harlem Renaissance and After Poems and biographies of selected authors. featuring biographies and selected poems.
• Harlem Renaissance Site Biographies, photos, and analysis of important personages and their works. Lists events important to the African American Community of the 1920s. This site has been done with loving care. Created and maintained by the Honors Computer Science class at Father Ryan High School, Nashville, Tennessee.

A brief snippit of Great Britain between the Wars

A General Strike took place in Great Britain in 1926. The Prime Minister at the time was Staney Baldwin.

David Lloyd George had been Prime Misister when the decade began.

Ramsay MacDonald was Prime Minister as the decade came to a close.

In 1922, "the French press took photographs of Llyod George giving a golf lesson to the French prime minister, Briand. For many in France this incident typified the patronizing, arrogant tone of the British and the subservient status of their own country; an inexperienced and naive French leader was allegedly being hoodwinked by the wily Welshman." It led to the fall of Briand's government. [Quoted from Doerr, Paul W., British Foreign Policy, 1919-1939]

How did life in Italy differ from that of the United States during the Twenties? This nation was led by a man named Benito Mussolini who, by the end of the decade, had established himself as a dictator. He and his followers espoused a political phiosophy known as Fascism.

In 1932, aided by Giovanni Gentile, Mussolini wrote an entry for the Italian Encyclopedia on the definition of fascism.

Matthew N. Lyons thoughts on What is Fascism

A lecture on the Origns of Fascisim by Professor Gerhard Rempel, Western New England College

Benito Mussolini Biography offers background, conclusions and a bibliography.

Fascism In Italy. In 1918 Benito Mussolini was one of thousands of Italian soldiers who had returned from the fighting during the First World War. In October 1922 he became prime minister of Italy, and from 1925 ruled as a dictator. This site offers explantions for the rise of Mussolini in the years following the First World War.

Fascist Italytraces the history of Italy from 1919 into the start of World War Two

Some suggest that the failure to acheive all that was promised by the Treaty of London, 1915, helped set the stage for Mussolini. Finds exerpts here. An analysis of this Treaty with a map is also helpful.

During World War One a revolution had taken place in Russia. Known as the October Revolution. Here is a detailed account. Russia left World War One early by signing the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk

Some of the major figures in Russia at this time were

• Vladimir Ilich Lenin
• Leon Trotsky and
• Joseph Stalin
• Anton Yushin's [LHA '02] thoughts and links on the rise of Communism in Russia after World War One.

From 1917-1932, Russia went through four main stages of development. These sites encorporate the events with the literature of the period.

• The October Revolution, 1917-1918
• The Civil War, 1918-1920
• The NEP [New Economic Policy], 1920-1928
• The First Five Year Plan, 1929-1932

Lenin and Stalin. This site discusses how Lenin influenced Stalin. Or did he?

Lectuers by Professor Gerhard Rempel, Western New England College, on

• The New Economic Policy
• The creation of the Comintern, the Communist International.
• The relationship between Stalin and Trotsky