1902 Trivia, History and Fun Facts

1902 Trivia, History, and Fun Facts

Top Ten Baby Names of 1902

Mary, Helen, Anna, Margaret, Ruth, John, William, James, George, Charles

US Life Expectancy

(1902) Males: 49.8 years, Females: 53.4 years

Firsts, Inventions and Wonders

The Fuller Building (now called the Flatiron Building) at 175 Fifth Avenue in the borough of Manhattan, New York City, was completed.

The Texas Oil Company (Texaco) was formed.

(oops!) – The Greek symbol Caduceus (two snakes on a winged pole) was mistakenly used as the emblem for the US Medical Corps instead of the Rod of Asclepius (one snake climbing a pole), the true Greek symbol for medicine. We still use the wrong one.

J C Penney opened his first store in Kemmerer, Wyoming.

The American Automobile Association (AAA) was founded in Chicago.

Alfred Thayer Mahan (1840-1914) first invented the term ‘Middle East’ in the September 1902 issue of London’s monthly National Review.

Carnegie Institution for Science (CIS) was founded in Washington, DC, with a $10 Million grant from Andrew Carnegie.

Denmark became the first country to adopt fingerprinting to identify criminals.

The Electric Theatre, the first full-time movie theater in the United States, opened in Los Angeles, California.

The Most Popular Singers and Artists of 1902 include

Arthur Collins, Charles D’ Almaine, Joe Belmont, S.H. Dudley, Edward M. Favor, Byron G. Harlon, The Hayden Quartet, Mina Hickman, Silas Leachman, Jules Levy, Aldrich Libbey, Harry Macdonough, Jere Mahoney, The Metropolitan Orchestra, J.W. Meyers, Dan Quinn, William Redmond, John Philip Sousa’s Band, Len Spencer, Frank Stanley, Cal Stewart, Fred Van Epps, Bert Williams

Pop Culture Facts & History

A Trip to the Moon (Le Voyage Dans la Lune), directed by Georges Méliès, is recognized as the first Science Fiction film.

The Cecil Rhodes Scholarship fund was established.

Brooklyn, NY, toymaker Morris Michtom named his Teddy Bear doll after US President Teddy Roosevelt.

Paleontologist Barnum Brown discovered remains of a Tyrannosaurus Rex near the town of Jordan, Montana.

Michigan beat Stanford 49-0 in the Tournament East-West Football Game, which would later be known as the Rose Bowl Game

1902 was about the time Trains were used more than Horses for transportation.

Marie and Pierre Curie isolated the radioactive element radium chloride.

Grawlix, or obscenicons (like #@$%&!) as swear words in comics, were first seen in The Katzenjammer Kids in 1902.

The Horrible

The volcanic eruption of Mt. Pelée on the French-Caribbean island of Martinique on May 8, 1902, killed between 30 and 40 thousand people.

The Yacolt Burn is the collective name for dozens of September fires in Washington and Oregon, killing ~70 people.

A Mystery

Albert Einstein and his wife Mileva Maric had a daughter in 1902 named Lieserl before they were married. Her existence was only discovered in 1986. Einstein is believed to have never met her, and what happened to her is a mystery.

Nobel Prize Winners

Physics – Hendrik Antoon Lorentz and Pieter Zeeman
Chemistry – Hermann Emil Fischer
Medicine – Ronald Ross
Literature – Christian Matthias Theodor Mommsen
Peace – Élie Ducommun and Charles Albert Gobat

Popular and Best-selling Books From 1902

Fiction Bestsellers: 
1. The Virginian by Owen Wister
2. Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch by Alice Caldwell Hegan
3. Dorothy Vernon of Haddon Hall by Charles Major
4. The Mississippi Bubble by Emerson Hough
5. Audrey by Mary Johnston
6. The Right of Way by Gilbert Parker
7. The Hound of the Baskervilles by A. Conan Doyle
8. The Two Vanrevels by Booth Tarkington
9. The Blue Flower by Henry van Dyke
10. Sir Richard Calmady by Lucas Malet

Other Books of Note

The Tale of Peter Rabbit by Beatrix Potter
Democracy and Social Ethics by Jane Addams
Varieties of Religious Experience by William James
Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
Human Nature and Social Order by C. H. Cooley
The Virginian by Owen Wister
The Immoralist by André Gide
What is to be Done? by Vladimir Lenin
The Wings of the Dove by Henry James
Garden Cities of To-morrow by Ebenezer Howard

Sports

American League Baseball Champions: Philadelphia Athletics
National League Baseball Champions: Pittsburg Pirates
Challenge Cup Champs: Winnipeg Victorias/Montreal Hockey Club
U.S. Open Golf: Laurie Auchterlonie
U.S. Tennis (Men/Ladies): William Larned/Marion Jones
Wimbledon (Men/Women): Laurence Doherty/Muriel Robb
NCAA Football Champions: Michigan
Kentucky Derby Winner: Alan-a-Dale
Boston Marathon Winner: Sammy Mellor Time: 2:43:12

More 1902 History Resources

Most Popular Baby Names (BabyCenter.com)
Popular and Notable Books (popculture.us) 
Broadway Shows that opened in 1902
1902 Calendar, courtesy of Time and Date.com 
Fact Monster 
Wikipedia 1902