On The Final Presidential Election In 1920s America — “I do not chose to run for president in 1928.” So was the shocking decision by President Calvin Coolidge on Aug. 2, 1927. The public was stunned as many thought it would be an obvious decision by him to run for another elected term. After all, the economy was booming…

The Birth Of “The Ponzi Scheme” From 1920s America — In 1918, an Italian immigrant arrived in Boston. He came penniless, just out of back-to-back stints in prison, each in two separate countries. He soon met and married his wife, Rose, herself an Italian immigrant. After some odd jobs, he took up work with an importing and exporting company to…

On The Tulsa Race Riots From 1920s America — In the northern part of Tulsa, Oklahoma, sits a small predominantly black community known as Greenwood. Some may not know this, but unlike other new expanding territories and newfound states stretching across the western plains, Oklahoma was at the time more solidly aligned with the Deep South’s mentality; it had…

On The Rise Of Walt Disney In 1920s America — In Kansas City, animator Ub Iwerks, working for the Pesmen-Rubin Commercial Art Studio, befriended a newly hired intern in 1919. He was a young man — just 18 — returning from overseas deployment in World War I , having forged his birth date to be accepted for service while underage…

On The Lake Okeechobee Hurricane Of 1920s America — On Sept. 6, 1928, ships sailing off the west coast of Africa began to report the formation of a tropical depression. Within a day, the reports changed, upgrading it to a tropical storm. With few consistent observations of tropical cyclones available at the time, the storm churned across the Atlantic…

The president’s unpopularity may harm the GOP this November — We are less than five months away from Election Day 2018. These midterms—like nearly all the ones before it—revolve around the status of the party and president in power. Our current moment has the Republican Party in control of Congress and the White House. This is a precarious position, as…

On The Leopold And Loeb Trial From 1920s America — In May 1924, Flora Franks, the wife of highly respected and wealthy Chicago watch manufacturer Jacob Franks, received a call from a stranger at 10:30 in the evening. He had a terrifying message for her. He knew where Mrs. Franks’ missing 14-year-old son Bobby was. …

On President Calvin Coolidge In 1920s America — Plymouth Notch, Vermont. It’s 2:30 in the morning on Aug. 2, 1923. Fifty-one-year-old Vice President Calvin Coolidge is awoken from his sleep. His father, John, has some news: President Warren G. Harding has died from a sudden heart attack. Coolidge would now have to take the oath to become the…

On The Teapot Dome Scandal From 1920s America — In April 1922, U.S Sen. John B. Kendrick from Wyoming received an angry letter from a Wyoming oil operator. The letter included a claim from the operator that the Teapot Dome oil field from his state, in the hands of the Department of the Interior, had been handed over to…