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1906 Fun Facts, Trivia and History |
Table of Contents Top Ten Baby Names of 1906Mary, Helen, Margaret, Anna, Ruth, John, William, James, George, Robert |
US Life Expectancy(1906) Males: 46.9 years, Females: 50.8 years |
Firsts, Inventions and WondersThe first Victor Victrola phonographic record player was manufactured. Willis Carrier received his US patent (#808,897) for the world’s first air conditioner (“apparatus for treating air,”). The first animated cartoon, Humorous Phases of Funny Faces, was copyrighted. Filed three years earlier, the US Patent (#821,393) was granted on May 22, 1906, to Wilbur and Orville Wright for “new and useful improvement in Flying Machines.” Finland was the first country in the world to give women the right to vote and run for office. One year later, the world’s first female MPs were elected. Federated Boys’ Club (Boys’ Club of America) was organized among 53 independent organizations. Alpha Phi Alpha, 1st Black Greek Letter Fraternity, was formed at Cornell. Initial members were Henry Arthur Callis, Charles Henry Chapman, Eugene Kinckle Jones, George Biddle Kelley, Nathaniel Allison Murray, Robert Harold Ogle, and Vertner Woodson Tandy. The Devil’s Tower in Crook County, Wyoming, was the first declared United States National Monument, established on September 24, 1906. The first French Grand Prix occurred on a 64-mile circuit at Le Mans. Pure Food and Drug Act and Meat Inspection Act adopted by the US Congress. The Story of the Kelly Gang was released. Will Keith Kellogg and Charles D. Bolin founded the Battle Creek Toasted Corn Flake Company, now known as Kellogg’s. On January 12, 1, the Dow Jones closed above 100 (100.26) for the first time. The British Labour Party organized. Sweden adopted their (yellow cross on a blue background) flag. After two years of digging the Hudson River Tunnel (now one of the North River Tunnels), workers for the Pennsylvania Railroad Company connected Manhattan’s West Side with Weehawken, NJ. They met in the middle of the Hudson, completing the tunnel, and the two ends were only off by 1/16 of an inch. |
The Most Popular Singers and Artists of 1906 includeHenry Burr, Albert Campbell, Enrico Caruso, Arthur Collins, Byron G. Harlan, The Hayden Quartet, DeWolf Hopper, Ada Jones, Richard Jose, Harry Macdonough, James McCool, Corrine Morgan, Billy Murray, Voss Ossman, Arthur Pryor’s Band, Antonio Scotty, John Philip Sousa’s Band, Len Spencer, Frank Stanley, Harry Tally, Bert Williams |
Pop Culture Facts & HistoryWhen Dr. Alois Alzheimer presented his groundbreaking research on the disease, later known as Alzheimer’s Disease, the audience asked zero questions. It made zero comments because they wanted to hear the following lecture (about compulsive pleasure seeking). Auguste Deter was the first person diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease. Jack London’s novel White Fang began serialization in the magazine Outing. Written by journalist Upton Sinclair, The Jungle was published. Mary Astor planned the release of 10,000 imported Brazilian butterflies at her Debutante Ball, housed in nets lining the ceiling. They didn’t consider the lights’ heat, and her party ended with 10,000 dead insects showering her guests. An underground fire sparked a massive explosion that spread through a series of mines, killing over 1,000 men in Courrieres, France. Umpires were placed in charge of all Baseball Games. 1906 World Series: Chicago White Sox (A.L.) won 4-2 over across-town rivals Chicago Cubs (N.L.) Rolls-Royce rolled out the Silver Ghost. It is considered the most valuable car in the world. The Ford Model N was released, replacing Models A, C, and F. Mount Vesuvius Erupted: Vesuvius erupted from April 4th through the 21st, devastating Naples and killing over 100 people. The scattered population of black squirrels on the East Coast are all thought to have descended from 8 Canadian squirrels acquired through a great squirrel exchange between Canada’s Rondeau Provincial Park and the National Zoo in Washington, DC. They were subsequently released from the zoo in 1906. The “Census of the British Empire” showed England ruled 1/5 of the world in 1906. SOS (. . . ___ ___ ___ . . .) became the international distress signal, announced by The International Radiotelegraph Conference in Berlin. The San Francisco Earthquake, measuring 7.8 on the Richter scale, shook the town of San Francisco, California, and thirty thousand homes were either partially or wholly destroyed. An estimated 3,000 people were reported killed. In response to the rioting and looting that followed the San Francisco 1906 earthquake, Mayor Eugene Schmitz authorized federal troops and local officers to “kill any persons found engaging in Looting or the Commission of Any Other Crime.” Roald Amundsen discovered the Magnetic South Pole. |
Nobel Prize WinnersPhysics – J.J. Thomson |
Popular and Best-selling Books From 1906 |
Fiction Bestsellers1. Coniston by Winston Churchill |
SportsWorld Series Champions: Chicago White Sox |
More 1906 History ResourcesMost Popular Baby Names (BabyCenter.com) |
