Year 2005 Fun Facts, Trivia, and History Events

This quick read presents a collection of fun facts, trivia, and history events from the year 2005. 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 2005, George W. Bush was the U.S. president, and Dick Cheney was the nation’s vice president.
2. The U.S. unemployment rate averaged 5%, the nation’s inflation rate was 3.39%, and the average retail price for a gallon of gas was $2.30.
3. The prime rate was 5.50%, an ounce of gold averaged $513.00, and the median household income in the U.S. was $46,242.00.
4. There were over two million farms in the U.S., including 79,600 in Minnesota.
5. The United States produced nearly ten billion pounds of apples, and more than half of them were grown in the state of Washington.
6. Here were the sticker prices for two best-selling 2005 cars: A Chevrolet Impala cost $18,485.00, and a Chrysler Town & Country was $26,495.00.
7. On February 8, Google Maps was launched.
8. On February 15, Jawed Karim, Steve Chen, and Chad Hurley launched the video-sharing website YouTube.
9. On February 26, Tony Blair marked 2,838 days as the United Kingdom’s prime minister.
10. On February 27, at the 77th Academy Awards, Million Dollar Baby won an Oscar for Best Picture, and Clint Eastwood (Million Dollar Baby) won an Oscar for Best Director. Jamie Foxx (Ray) won an Oscar for Best Actor, and Hilary Swank (Million Dollar Baby) won an Oscar for Best Actress.
11. On April 19, German Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger became the new Roman Catholic pope.
12. On April 27, the world’s largest passenger plane, the Airbus A380, took to the skies from Toulouse-Blagnac airport in France. Rhys Lewis tells us that the A380 boasts 40% more floor space than Boeing’s current largest plane and can carry 853 passengers in an all-economy class configuration. The plane is powered by four Rolls-Royce engines, has a cruising speed of 560 mph, and is more fuel efficient than many smaller jets.
13. On May 9, Andrew Breitbart, Arianna Huffington, Kenneth Lerer, and Jonah Peretti launched the Huffington Post, a news and opinion website.
14. On June 13, a jury in Santa Maria, California, acquitted Michael Jackson of molesting 13-year-old Gavin Arvizo at his Neverland Ranch.
15. On June 23, the social news website Reddit was launched in San Francisco.
16. On July 16, J. K. Rowling published Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, the sixth book in the series. Over nine million copies were sold in twenty-four hours.
17. On July 29, astronomers Mike Brown, Chad Trujillo, and David Rabinowitz discovered the dwarf planet Eris. Futurism.com states, “Three times more distant from the Sun than Pluto (almost 10 billion miles), Eris is the largest dwarf planet in the Solar System.”
18. On August 29, Hurricane Katrina made landfall and caused massive destruction along the coasts of Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. The levees around the city of New Orleans failed, “causing catastrophic flooding that submerged about 80% of the city.”
19. At the 57th Primetime Emmy Awards on September 18, Everybody Loves Raymond (CBS) won an Emmy for Outstanding Comedy Series, and Lost (ABC) won an Emmy for Outstanding Drama Series. Tony Shalhoub (Monk) won an Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series, and Felicity Huffman (Desperate Housewives) won an Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series.
20. On October 19, Hurricane Wilma became the strongest Atlantic storm on record. TheGuardian.com reports that “Hurricane Wilma's highest sustained winds were measured at 175 mph by US Air Force reconnaissance planes, while its pressure readings dropped to 882 millibars, the lowest minimum pressure ever measured in a hurricane in the Atlantic basin.”
21. In November, Google released Google Analytics, a “freemium service” that allows anyone with a website “to monitor and create reports of their visitors.”
22. Between December 14 and 16, a winter storm caused widespread ice damage throughout the southern United States, while the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec reported extensive snowfall.
23. On December 20, New York City's Transport Workers Union Local 100 went on strike, shutting down all New York City subway and bus services for three days.
24. On December 30, tropical storm Zeta formed in the Atlantic Ocean and became “one of only two recorded storms to cross from one calendar year to another.”
25. In 2005, Google’s most popular search terms were Janet Jackson, Hurricane Katrina, tsunami, Brad Pitt, Michael Jackson, American Idol, Britney Spears, Angelina Jolie, and Harry Potter.
26. The most popular web browsers were Internet Explorer (85.05%), Firefox (9.57%), Safari (3.07%), Netscape (1.24%), and Opera (0.55%).
27. Florida Governor Jeb Bush signed a bill that made the orange the official fruit of Florida.
28. Cristeta Comerford became the first woman to serve as the White House executive chef.
29. The cardboard box was inducted into the National Toy Hall of Fame.
30. Starbucks opened its 10,000th coffeehouse.
31. Fashion trends for the year were trucker hats, skinny jeans, cargo pants, Juicy Couture tracksuits, western shirts with pearl snaps, and layered polos.
32. Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith was the most popular film, The Broker was the best-selling fiction book, and American Idol (Fox) was the top TV show.
33. Here are some sports facts from the year 2005: The New England Patriots were the Super Bowl champs, the Chicago White Sox won the World Series, and the San Antonio Spurs were the NBA champions. In addition, the Stanley Cup was not awarded in 2005 because of the NHL lockout.
34. In 2005 as well, the words "Debbie Downer," "microblogging," "ransomware," "truthiness," "unvaxxed," "upvote," and "vodcast" all appeared in print for the first time.
35. Apples (Braeburn): $1.29 a pound
36. Beef (ground): $3.29 a pound
37. Beef (sirloin steak): $6.49 a pound
38. Butter (Breakstone brand): $1.99 for a one-pound package
39. Cereal (Kellogg’s Froot Loops): $1.99 for a 15-ounce box
40. Cookies (Keebler Fudge Shoppe): $1.49 for an 8.5-ounce package
41. Crackers (Nabisco Ritz): $3.19 for a 12-ounce box
42. Eggs: $2.50 a dozen
43. Grapefruit: Two for $3.00
44. Grapes (Thompson seedless): 89 cents a pound
45. Ham (Hormel, cooked): $2.99 per pound
46. Jelly (Welch’s, grape): $1.39 for a 32-ounce jar
47. Juice (apple): 99 cents for a one-gallon jug
48. Juice (Tropicana, orange): $2.99 for a 96-ounce jug
49. Ketchup (Heinz): $1.39 for a 14-ounce bottle
50. Margarine (Parkay): $1.84 for a three-pound tub
51. Mayonnaise (Hellmann’s): $2.99 for a 43-ounce jar
52. Onions (yellow): 88 cents for a three-pound bag
53. Oranges (navel): Five for $1.88
54. Peanut butter (Skippy, crunchy or creamy): Two 18-ounce jars for $3.00
55. Pineapple (Del Monte, whole): $2.88 apiece
56. Potato chips (Ruffles): $4.00 for two 10-ounce bags
57. Potatoes: 98 cents for a five-pound bag
58. Soda (Coca-Cola): $1.09 for a two-liter bottle
59. Soup (Campbell’s, tomato): 79 cents for a 10.75-ounce can
60. Valentine’s candy (Russell Stover): $9.99 for a 28-ounce heart-shaped box

References:

1. https://popculturemadness.com/2005-tivia-fun-facts-and-history/
2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2005_in_the_United_States
3. https://www.infoplease.com/year/2005
4. https://www.merriam-webster.com/time-traveler/2004
5. https://www.computerhope.com/history/2005.htm
6. https://www.foodreference.com/html/html/food-history-2001.html
7. https://www.mclib.info/Research/Local-History-Genealogy/Historic-Prices/Historic-Prices-2000s/Historic-Prices-2005
8. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Internet_properties_established_in_2005
9. https://www.infoplease.com/awards/nobel/2005-nobel-prize-winners
10. https://www.onthisday.com/date/2005

© 2026 Gregory DeVictor