facts about the year 1916

30 facts about the year 1916

The year 2016 is upon us. We are storming into an exciting new year of technology, innovation, space exploration, medical discoveries, and some less-than-savory stuff as well. We decided to take a small break from figuring out the future to looking back at how we got here. So, we put together a list of 30 facts about the year 1916 that you may not know.

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A lot was going on in the year 1916. World War I for example. The PGA was created. The average price of a car was about $400 (in 1916 currency).

1. 1916 was a leap year

2. The U.S. population was 101,961,000

3. The Professional Golfers Association of America (PGA) was created

4. Monet painted his Water Lilies series

5. A loaf of bread was about $.07

6. The cost of a stamp was $.02

7. The light switch was invented

8. Coffee was about $0.15 per pound

9. Sugar was about $0.04 per pound

10. The Boston Red Sox won the World Series

11. The average price of a U.S. house was $5,000

12. The first 40-hour work week officially began in the Endicott-Johnson factories

13. The first-ever Nathan’s July 4th Hot Dog Eating Competition was created

14. The average price of a car was $400

15. Only 6% of all Americans had graduated from high school

16. There were about 230 reported murders in the U.S.

17. The tallest building in the world was the Eiffel Tower

18. President Woodrow Wilson narrowly defeated Charles E. Hughes

19. 8% of homes had a telephone 20. The first blood transfusion was carried out

21. Temperature in Montana went from 44 °F to -56 °F, the greatest on record

22. Paris was bombed by German zeppelins for the first time.

23. The Battle of Verdun (WWI) began in France

24. The Chicago Cubs played their first game at Weeghman Park (Wrigley Field)

25. The Easter Rising occurred in Ireland

26. The Saturday Evening Post published it first cover (Norman Rockwell painting)

27. Nova Scotia and Winnipeg began implementing daylight savings time

28. Charlie Chaplin signed on with Mutual Studios to earn $10,000 a week

29. President Woodrow Wilson signed legislation creating the National Park Service

30. Albert Einstein completed his formulation of a general theory of relativity

Written by Jeff Dunn



Jeff is an education and technology lover who has worked in far too many industries to count. Okay, like maybe 5 or 6. Jeff can indeed count that high but it’s not recommended. Jeff also likes to write bios in the third-person.

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