As H.G. Wells wrote, “Human history in essence is the history of ideas.” 1925 was certainly a year of big ideas — and resulting events — around the world.

Let’s take a look back at 1925 and the political, cultural, and social milestones that continue to impact the world today.

Between January and December, Wikipedia notes a number of major 1925 events, such as the Scopes Monkey Trial in Tennessee, which challenged the teaching of evolution in schools; the publication of The Great Gatsby in New York, which became a cultural icon; the opening of the first Surrealist art exhibition; and Britain’s return to the gold standard. 

These events and more are easily mapped using our Batchgeo tool.

View 1925 Events in a full screen map

The 14 Categories of 1925 Events

Here’s the full breakdown of the 14 categories the above article puts these major 1925 events into:

Let’s take a closer look at where they occurred.

Events in the United States

Of the 58 major events that took place 100 years ago, 18 focus on one country: the United States. The most common categories mentioned are political, technology, and disasters. However, art and culture also made a strong showing, with two major events each.

Some notable events include Nellie Tayloe Ross becoming the first female governor (Wyoming) in the United States on January 5th. She was followed 12 days later by Ma Ferguson, who became the first female governor of Texas.

The Grand Ole Opry was first broadcast on radio as the “WSM Barn Dance” on November 28, starting what was soon to become a 100-year-old institution. And the Scopes trial (also known as the “Scopes Monkey Trial”) took place in Tennessee between July 10 and July 21, bringing intense scrutiny to the teaching of evolution.

Check out the rest of the US events on the map before moving on to the ones that occurred elsewhere in the world in 1925.

International Events

There may have been 18 major events taking place in the US, but the majority (40) happened internationally. History isn’t US-specific, after all. 

In January, the year started with a bang when the Federation of the Autonomous States of Syria was officially dissolved. The State of Syria replaced the States of Aleppo and Damascus. 

In February, Benito Mussolini gave a pivotal speech that’s largely seen as the start of his dictatorship. 

And March saw the first issue of the newspaper Pravda in what was then the Soviet Union; the publication continues in Russia today.

Later in the year, the Locarno Treaties were signed in London, intended to secure the post-war continental European territorial settlement. In Portugal, the money forgery and fraud activity of Alves dos Reis was exposed. Margaret Mead landed in American Samoa to begin nine months of fieldwork, which culminated in her book Coming of Age in Samoa. 

Meanwhile, 1925 was a year of technological advancements that continue to resonate a century on. Notably, in London, John Logie Baird successfully transmitted the first television pictures, in grayscale of course. And English racing motorist Malcolm Campbell became the first man to exceed 150 mph (241 km/h) on land.

We also can’t forget about the popular category of sports, which saw the formation of multiple football clubs. April saw the founding of the now well-known football club Colo-colo in Chile. And June brought the founding of the Turkish football club Göztepe.

Group Your Data with Batchgeo

You can group your data in a similar way when you map it with BatchGeo. And check out our previous posts highlighting the events that happened more than 100 years ago — these include major events in 1917, 1918, 1919, 1920, 1921, 1922, 1923, and 1924.