Year 1924 Fun Facts, Trivia, and History Events

This quick read presents a collection of fun facts, trivia, and historical events from the year 1924. Discover the year’s top news stories, most influential people, sports facts, historic firsts, entertainment news, and much more.

Take a journey through history in just minutes.

1. In 1924, President Calvin Coolidge, Babe Ruth, and George Gershwin were all on center stage. Baked ham and icebox cake were crowd-pleasers, and Charles and Dorothy were two of the most popular baby names.
2. A Neutrodyne radio receiver cost $100.00, a gallon of Benjamin Moore paint was $2.49, and straw hats were $2.25 apiece.
3. President of the United States: Calvin Coolidge
4. Average annual household income: About $2,160
5. Average cost of a new car: About $515
6. Average price of a new home: About $6,296
7. Average monthly rent: About $15
8. Average price of gold: $20.67 per troy ounce
9. Average retail price for a gallon of gas: 11 cents
10. Cost of a first-class stamp: Two cents
11. Inflation rate: 0.00 percent
12. Minimum wage: 33 cents per hour
13. Unemployment rate: 5 percent
14. United States population: 114,109,000
15. American companies and brands established during 1924 included Ace Hardware, Duracell, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Quaker State, Simon & Schuster, and the Zale Corporation.
16. Consumer products launched during the year included the Bit-O-Honey candy bar, Butter Brickle, Dum Dums, Imperial beer, iodized table salt, Kleenex facial tissue, locking pliers, Marlboro cigarettes, menthol cigarettes, and Wheaties breakfast cereal.
17. The first Winter Olympics took place in Chamonix, France, between January 25 and February 5.
18. In February, dockworkers in London went out on strike to protest poor working conditions. The National Archive remarks that "Working conditions for dockers were generally very poor. They were usually employed on a casual basis, day by day, and had little job security. There was often competition between gangs of dockers, which could sometimes break into violence. Employers could use the rivalry between the dockers to keep wages low."
19. February 7: The first state execution using lethal gas took place in Nevada. The History Channel reports that the executed man was Gee Jon, "a member of a Chinese gang who was convicted of murdering a rival gang member.”
20. February 12: George Gershwin first performed his piano solo, Rhapsody in Blue, at the Aeolian Hall in New York City. (Rhapsody in Blue is "a musical portrait of early-20th-century New York City" and is probably Gershwin's most famous piece.)
21. In 1911, IBM was originally founded as the Computing, Tabulating, and Recording Company (CTR). On February 14, 1924, Thomas J. Watson, an American businessman, renamed CTR as International Business Machines (IBM).
22. Between February 16 and 26, dockworkers' strikes took place in various U.S. harbors, including Everett (Washington), Los Angeles, Oakland (California), Portland (Oregon), San Francisco, and Seattle.
23. February 22: President Coolidge became the first U.S. president to deliver a radio broadcast from the White House. In a coast-to-coast broadcast on 42 radio stations, Coolidge "marked the birthday of George Washington, the nation's first president, who had been born 192 years ago on that same day."
24. In May, the Wrigley Building, a majestic skyscraper that once housed the corporate headquarters of the Wrigley Company, opened in Chicago. It was also the first air-conditioned office building in the Windy City. (In 1924, the Wrigley Company was the largest manufacturer of gum products in the world. Today, the Wrigley's brand features 24 flavors of chewing gum, including the ever-popular Doublemint, Juicy Fruit, and Spearmint flavors.)
25. May 10: J. Edgar Hoover was appointed as the first director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
26. May 21: Two University of Chicago students, Richard Loeb and Nathan Leopold Jr., murdered 14-year-old Bobby Franks in what was described as a "thrill killing."
27. May 26: President Coolidge signed the Immigration Act of 1924, which is also known as the Johnson-Reed Act. The federal law "prevented immigration from Asia and set quotas on the number of immigrants from Eastern and Southern Europe."
28. June 2: President Coolidge signed the Indian Citizenship Act of 1924, "granting citizenship to all Native Americans born within the territorial limits of the United States."
29. June 8: British mountain climbers Andrew Irvine and George Mallory died in a mountaineering accident while climbing Mount Everest, the world's tallest mountain.
30. On June 15, the Ford Motor Company manufactured the 10 millionth Model T Ford.
31. On July 1, direct airmail service began between New York City and San Francisco.
32. Between July 5 and July 27, Paris hosted the 1924 Summer Olympics.
33. On July 8, WNYC, New York City's "municipally owned and operated" radio station, began broadcasting.
34. August 5: Harold Gray's comic strip, Little Orphan Annie, debuted in the New York Daily News and ran for 86 more years until 2010.
35. From October 4 to October 10: At the 1924 World Series, the Washington Senators defeated the New York Giants in seven games to win their first championship in club history.
36. October 9: Soldier Field, home of the Chicago Bears NFL team, opened as the Municipal Grant Park Stadium.
37. On October 22, Ralph C. Smedley founded Toastmasters International in Santa Ana, California.
38. November 1: The Boston Bruins joined the National Hockey League (NHL) and became the first USA-based team to join the league.
39. November 4: Calvin Coolidge was elected to a full term as president of the United States by defeating Democratic candidate John W. Davis. (Calvin Coolidge's tenure as the 30th president of the United States began on August 2, 1923, when Coolidge became president upon Warren G. Harding's death.)
40. November 4: Nellie Tayloe Ross (D-Wyoming) became the first female governor in the United States.
41. November 22: Florence Harding, who was the first lady of the United States during the presidency of Warren G. Harding, died of renal failure in Marion, Ohio.
42. On November 27, the first Macy's Thanksgiving parade was held in New York City.
43. November 29: The Montreal Canadiens hosted the Toronto St. Pats in their first game at the newly built Montreal Forum. Sporting News has called the arena "the most storied building in hockey history."
44. December 1: The Boston Bruins defeated the Montreal Maroons, 2-1, at the first National Hockey League (NHL) game to be played on American soil.
45. In 1924, Albert B. Fall, Henry Sinclair, and Edward L. Doheny were all charged with bribery and conspiracy in the notorious Teapot Dome scandal, which unfolded during Warren Harding's presidency. (Just to let you know, Albert B. Fall was the first cabinet member to ever serve prison time. He served nine months of a one-year prison sentence for his "misconduct" while in office.)
46. The Plastic Age was a best-selling fiction book, The Thief of Bagdad was a top-grossing film, and It Had to Be You was one of the most popular songs.
47. Rand McNally published the first road atlas.
48. Simon & Schuster published the first crossword puzzle book.
49. By the end of 1924, there were 530 radio stations in the United States. Back then, you could purchase a Neutrodyne radio receiver for $100, which is about $1,900.00 in today's money.
50. The term "Bible Belt" first appeared in print in the Chicago Tribune. The Bible Belt is a region of the southern United States where "socially conservative Christianity" plays a major role in day-to-day life. The 15 states that are part of the Bible Belt include Alabama, Arkansas, northern Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia.
51. Famous people born in 1924 included Carroll O'Connor, Cicely Tyson, Dinah Washington, Don Knotts, George H.W. Bush, Gloria Vanderbilt, Henry Mancini, Jimmy Carter, Sarah Vaughan, and Truman Capote.
52. In 1924 as well, the words "answering machine," "Bible Belt," "bookmobile," "Cub Scout," "dump truck," "Geiger counter," "Lone Ranger," "parking lot," "prime rate," "superhighway," "tossed salad," "wisecrack," "wrecking ball," and "zipper" all appeared in print for the first time.

References:

1. https://popculturemadness.com/1924-history-trivia-and-fun-facts/
2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1924_in_the_United_States
3. https://www.infoplease.com/year/1924
4. https://www.merriam-webster.com/time-traveler/1924
5. https://www.onthisday.com/events/date/1924

© 2026 Gregory DeVictor