Eric Pilgrim's List: Prezi of the Roaring Twenties

• ONE PERSON IN EVERY TEN THOUSAND met a violent death in the 118 leading cities of the United States last year.
• To Chicago went the doubtful distinction of having the most homicides—510; New York City, with approximately twice the population of Chicago, had 340. In twenty-eight of the leading cities the rate was 9.9 per 100,000, as against 11.0 in 1925.
• "our murder record of approximately 12,000 persons each year is a most serious indictment of American civilization, and evidence of lawlessness which has no counterpart in any other country in the world."
• there were only 17 murders in London in 1926, and that there were arrests in 16 of the 17 cases.
• no distinction is made between degrees of murder and voluntary manslaughter and justifiable homicide. All are included in death by violence. 
  
• I t will probably astonish most readers," notes the Providence Journal, "to learn that in the matter of homicides, Jacksonville, Florida, headed the list of American cities, having a rate of 75.9 per 100,000 population."
• Just why there should be 104 homicides in Jacksonville, a city of 137,000, and but two in Grand Rapids, a much larger city, "is a question worth a good deal of study," thinks the New York World. To cite another instance: There were 75 homicides in Memphis, a city of 177,000, but only three in Worcester, Massachusetts, a city of approximately the same size, according to Dr. Hoffman.
• "The total of murders in the 118 cities in 1926 was 3,451 persons. This is a reproach on the weakness of our criminal laws, the loopholes through which murderers can escape or indefinitely delay punishment, and upon the administration of criminal laws.
• "Of all the large cities, Boston has the lowest homicide rate," we are reminded by the Boston Post. Moreover, points out the Providence Journal, "it is not the largest cities that have proportionately the most murders."
• "The tabulation in detail for 1926 concerns 118 American cities. The combined homicide death rate of these cities for 1926 was 10.1 per 100,000, as compared with 10.5 for the previous year. The homicide death rate increased in 37 cities and either remained stationary or declined in 81 cities. This, then, can be looked upon as evidence of progress. No homicides were reported in 18 of the 118 cities.
• "It is gratifying to be able to note a slight decline in the murder death rate of Chicago, which in 1925 had a rate of 18.8, against 16.7 during 1926. There was also a decline in the murder death rate of New York City from 6.4 to 5.7 per 100,000 of population, while for the city of Philadelphia, the rate declined from 9.7 to 8.6. 
  
• 
   "The cities in which the rate for 100,000 population was 18.0 or more are these:  
  
   1926 
  
   Jacksonville, Fla........... 76.9
    Tampa, Fla............... 67.6
    Birmingham, Ala........... 58.8
    Memphis, Tenn............ 42.4
    New Orleans, La. .......... 33.7
    Kansas City, Mo.......... 32.3
    Dallas, Tex................ 32.0
    Charleston. S. C........... 29.7
    Nashville, Tenn............ 29.2
    Mobile, Ala............... 28.4
    Louisville, Ky. ............ 26.7
    Houston, Tex............. 25.8
    Detroit, Mich............. 25.3
    Sacramento, Calif.......... 21.8
    Pueblo, Colo. ............. 20.5
    Kansas City. Kans......... 18.8
    St. Louis, Mo............. 18.6
    Cincinnati, 0.............. 18.2
    Winston-Salem, N. C....... 18.1
  

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• The rapidly growing automobile industry  led by Henry Ford and the Ford Motor Company produced new and better models every year for the insatiable public demand.  Increased wages and lower cost vehicles through mass production made cars increasingly affordable, although 3 out of 4 cars were bought  on installment plans.
• Roads that had been designed for horse transport began to deteriorate under the steadily increasing load of traffic.  In 1906 local governments supplied 96 per cent. of the road funding. In 1927 the State governments supplied about 37 per cent.,  the Federal Government 10 per cent., and the local governments 53 per cent.
• While horse-drawn traffic prevailed,
• roads were a matter for local administration, but the motorcar brought the question into a broader jurisdiction.  Roads (including wooden roads) had to be  redesigned and rebuilt to accomodate the automobile, new road rules had to be introduced, standardized road signs erected, and methods of controlling traffic (like traffic  lights) implemented in densely populated areas.
• Vehicles required much higher road clearances than modern cars due to the poor state of roads and tracks,  hence the large diameter skinny tires of the day which were effective at cutting through mud to reach more solid ground
• 
   The car enabled people to travel much further afield than foot or horse had permitted.
• there were often long distances between petrol stations and breakdowns were fairly common.
• Petrol station chains cashed in on the trend by supplying  maps that highlighted their business locations, and then sold travellers food and drink as well as petrol and oil.
• 1927 was the release of the "new Ford", the Model A, which replaced the long-standing Model T after 18 years of production.
• Most of the early cars were open tourers (convertibles) but it didn't take long before they were enclosed and fitted with heaters to  improve passenger comfort.
• Companies that had formerly produced horse drawn vehicles became vehicle manufacturers or built bodies on  chassis produced by others
• Many of the expensive cars were custom built for their wealthy owners, who often had a chauffeur/mechanic to  drive them.
• Many of the automotive innovations that we think of as being modern were in fact introduced in the 1920's. Things like electric powered cars,  four wheel drive, front wheel drive, and even hybrid fuel/electric cars. 
  
• 
   Car advertisements became more sophisticated as psychology was employed by copywriters. Previously, ads had focused on specifications, engine horsepower, and  features - but the late 1920's ushered in the style of advertising that appealed to people's emotions rather than intellect.
• Automobile manufacturers also targeted women  drivers by advertising in women's magazines and by making cars more appealing to women. They did this by increasing the range of colors, improving  the quality and style of upholstery and interior linings, and by making cars easier to drive and maintain.
• Many of the car paint colors and color schemes were based on English horse-drawn coach livery, and even chauffeur driven car designs resembled horse-drawn coaches.  Never before had cars been so colorful and attractive, with flowing curves and rakish lines. Comfort levels improved with the introduction of heaters, balloon  tires, and improved suspensions including better shock absorbers.
• The wealthy disposed of some of their excess wealth in the late 1920's by splurging on expensive ($15,000-$50,000) european cars like Mercedes and Hispano-Suiza  which they imported into America. America too had its luxury cars like the Cadillac and Packard that were favored by the big name movie stars.

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• The movies, radio shows, sophisticated advertising, and popular magazines all had an influence on the lives of 1920's youth who saw themselves as different  from the older generation. Young people began to model themselves on movie and sports stars who represented a glamorous new age, but they also took on many  of the negative traits of their idols like smoking, bad language, immorality, and selfishness. And so the new youth culture manifested itself as the flapper  and sheik.
• flapper stereotype is one of short bobbed or shingled hair, straight loose knee-length dresses with a dropped waistline, silk or rayon stockings with garters,  heavy makeup, and long beaded necklaces.
• One Connecticut damsel gives the following recipe for the flapper:—"Take two bare knees, two rolled stockings, two flapping goloshes, one short skirt, one  lipstick, one powder puff, 33 cigarettes, and a boy friend with flask. Season with a pinch of salt and dash of pep, and cover all with some spicy sauce, and  you have the old-time flapper."
• The flapper started to fade away in 1928
• Gone is the flapper. In her place has come the young woman with poise, of soft-toned and correct speech, soberly dressed, and without closely cropped hair

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• The introduction of refrigerators enabled healthier and longer storage of perishable foodstuffs, with consequent health benefits as well  as time saved due to less frequent purchases.
• permitted the transport of perishable foodstuffs over much longer  distances by road and sea.
• American diet in the early part of the century  consisted for a large part of meat and potatoes.
• Data from 1920  reveals that 44 hours were spent on preparing meals and cleaning up after them each week.
• vitamins began to be discovered from 1912 on,  fruit, vegetables and milk became much more important than they had in the earlier years.
• The public's eating habits changed as Americans ate fewer starches (like bread and potatoes) and increased consumption of fruit and sugar.
• shift toward processed foods.
• an increasing number of Americans purchased foods that  were ready-to-cook.
• World War I brought about new methods of food processing as manufacturers streamlined production methods of canned  and frozen foods.
• Processed foods reduced the enormous amounts of time that had previously been taken up in peeling, grinding, and cutting.
• Gas stoves, electric refrigerators, and other labor-saving kitchen devices enabled ready preparation and storage of food and beverages,  making possible the introduction of greater varieties of foodstuffs into the American diet, and condiments  introduced by immigrants added new flavors.
• "Woman's Institute of Domestic Arts" in Scranton, PA ran a correspondence cooking course to teach women how to prepare, cook and serve food  using the most up-to-date information available.
• depression of the late 1920's and 1930's a cheap source of meat was rabbits.
• Manufactured foods introduced in the 1920s include -  Baby Ruth Candy Bar (1920). Wonder Bread (1920). Yoo-Hoo Chocolate Drink (1923). Reese's Peanut Butter Cup (1923). Welch's Grape Jelly (1923).  Popsicles (1924). Wheaties (1924). Hostess Cakes (1927). Kool-Aid (1927). Peter Pan Peanut Butter (1928). Velveeta Cheese (1928). (Source: Bon Appetit magazine), and just like today there was debate over brown bread vs white bread.
• FOOD ADVERTISEMENTS January 1920 "Woman's Home Companion" Magazine 
   
  • Campbells Ox Tail Soup
   
  • Nestles Milk Food
   
  • Heinz Tomato Ketchup
   
  • Uncle Johns Syrup
   
  • Snowdrift Vegetable Shortening
   
  • None Such Mince Meat
   
  • Swans Down Cake Flour
   
  • National Biscuit Company
   
  • Log Cabin Syrup
   
  • Heinz Spaghetti
   
  • Van Camps Pork and Beans
   
  • Van Camps Peanut Butter
   
  • Del Monte Canned Fruits and Vegetables
   
  • Pompeian Olive Oil
   
  • Faust Instant Coffee
   
  • Rumford Baking Powder
   
  • Grape-Nuts
   
  • Sunkist Lemons
   
  • Diamond Crystal Salt
   
  • Dromedary Cocoanut
• FOOD ADVERTISEMENTS January 1927 "Woman's Home Companion" Magazine 
   
  • Campbells Vegetable-Beef Soup
   
  • Libbys Hawaiian Pineapple
   
  • Maxwell House Coffee
   
  • Del Monte Fruits
   
  • Cream Of Wheat
   
  • Del Monte Spinach
   
  • Armours Star Ham
   
  • Del Monte Peas
   
  • Royal Baking Powder
   
  • Seald Sweet Oranges
   
  • Jenny Wren Flour
   
  • Colmans Mustard
   
  • Hawaiian Pineapple
   
  • Fleischmann's Yeast
   
  • Aunt Jemima Pancake Flour
   
  • Bottled Carbonated Beverages
   
  • Postum Cereal
   
  • Diamond Crystal Salt
   
  • Steero Bouillon Cubes
   
  • Brer Rabbit Molasses
   
  • Bordens Eagle Brand Condensed Milk
   
  • Squibbs Cod Liver Oil
   
  • Mellins Food
   
  • Bordens Eagle Brand Condensed Milk
   
  • Premier Salad Dressing
   
  • Minute Tapioca
• in 1925 the first  home mechanical refrigerator, the Frigidaire, came on the market.
• When Prohibition went into effect in America on January 16, 1920, it increased the production of soft drinks and spurred the growth of  tea rooms and cafeterias, while alcohol production and consumption went "underground".
• Prohibition may also have been partly resposible for the remarkable increase  in the consumption of cocoa and chocolate in this country.
• concept of prepared foods to eat at home. The restaurants were called Automats because, besides a cafeteria line, they featured food  behind small glass windows that was accessed by putting a few nickels in the slots.

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• In the public eye, the 1920s gangster and bootlegger "above the law" lifestyle brought money, fame, nice clothes, women, cars, and homes.
• The 20's most famous gangsters were: "Scarface" Capone, "Lucky" Luciano, "Bugs" Moran (AKA Jack "Legs" Diamond), and "Dutch" Schultz.