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Quizzes > History > Modern History

Roaring Twenties Quiz: Test Your 1920 Trivia Skills!

Dive into 1920's trivia and challenge yourself with this Roaring Twenties quiz!

Difficulty: Moderate
2-5mins
Learning OutcomesCheat Sheet
1920s themed paper art quiz illustration on a golden yellow background

Use this 1920 trivia quiz to see how much you know about the Roaring Twenties - flappers, Prohibition, jazz, speakeasies, and early Hollywood. Play for fun and learn a fact or two as you go. Want more practice? Check the 1920s guide or try the flapper quiz .

Which amendment to the U.S. Constitution began the era of Prohibition in 1920?
20th Amendment
19th Amendment
17th Amendment
18th Amendment
The 18th Amendment, ratified in 1919 and in effect starting 1920, prohibited the manufacture, sale, and transport of intoxicating liquors in the United States. This marked the beginning of the Prohibition era, which lasted until the amendment's repeal. The law led to the rise of speakeasies and bootlegging.
What was the nickname commonly used to describe the 1920s in America?
The Gilded Age
The Great Depression
The Progressive Era
The Roaring Twenties
The term Roaring Twenties captures the decades economic boom, cultural shifts, and exuberant social life in America following World War I. The phrase emphasizes the eras dynamic changes in music, fashion, and lifestyle. It remains one of the most recognized nicknames for the decade.
In 1920, American women gained the right to vote with the ratification of which amendment?
18th Amendment
19th Amendment
20th Amendment
17th Amendment
The 19th Amendment, ratified on August 18, 1920, granted American women the right to vote. It was the culmination of decades of activism by suffragists and marked a major victory in the womens rights movement. The amendments passage transformed the U.S. electorate.
What term described the fashionable, independent young women who challenged traditional norms in the 1920s?
Suffragette
Flapper
Dandy
Vamp
Flappers were young women in the 1920s known for their bold fashion, short skirts, and liberated lifestyles. They embraced jazz music, bobbed hair, and more socially independent attitudes, challenging preWorld War I norms. Flappers became iconic symbols of the Jazz Age.
Which musical genre surged in popularity during the 1920s, symbolizing the Jazz Age?
Jazz
Classical
Blues
Rock
Jazz exploded onto the national scene in the 1920s, blending African and European musical traditions and emphasizing improvisation. Clubs in cities like New Orleans, Chicago, and New York made it the defining sound of the decade. It became known as Americas classical music.
Who was a famous jazz trumpeter known as Satchmo popular in the 1920s?
Jelly Roll Morton
Louis Armstrong
Bix Beiderbecke
Duke Ellington
Louis Armstrong, nicknamed Satchmo or Pops, revolutionized jazz with his virtuosic trumpet playing and charismatic stage presence. He became one of the most influential figures in jazz history during the 1920s. Armstrongs recordings helped popularize the genre worldwide.
What illegal establishment became popular as a secret bar during Prohibition?
Gin mill
Speakeasy
Soda fountain
Tea room
Speakeasies were illicit bars that operated during Prohibition, often hidden behind unmarked doors or requiring a password for entry. They became centers for jazz music and socializing despite the federal ban on alcohol. The name comes from patrons being asked to speak easy about these venues.
Which film, released in 1927, was the first feature-length movie with synchronized dialogue sequences?
The Jazz Singer
Metropolis
Sunrise
Nosferatu
The Jazz Singer (1927) was the first feature film to include synchronized recorded music and lip-synced dialogue, signaling the end of the silent film era. Its success paved the way for talkies and transformed Hollywood filmmaking. Al Jolsons performance is especially remembered for the line, You aint heard nothin yet!
Which F. Scott Fitzgerald novel, published in 1925, epitomized the decadence of the Jazz Age?
This Side of Paradise
Tender Is the Night
The Great Gatsby
The Beautiful and Damned
The Great Gatsby, released in 1925, explores themes of wealth, decadence, and the American Dream during the Roaring Twenties. Fitzgeralds vivid portrayal of Jay Gatsbys lavish parties made the novel synonymous with Jazz Age excess. It remains a classic of American literature.
What technological innovation became widespread in the 1920s, transforming mass communication?
Radio
Internet
Telegraph
Telephone
Radio broadcasting took off in the 1920s, bringing news, music, and entertainment into homes across America. Stations like WEAF in New York and KDKA in Pittsburgh led the way. The medium unified the national audience and reshaped popular culture.
Which dance craze, characterized by high kicks and energetic movements, became synonymous with 1920s youth culture?
The Foxtrot
The Charleston
The Lindy Hop
The Waltz
The Charleston became wildly popular in the early 1920s, often performed by flappers at jazz clubs and parties. Its fast-paced moves and syncopated rhythm epitomized the eras exuberance. It remains one of the most recognized dances from the decade.
Who became the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean in 1928?
Bessie Coleman
Jacqueline Cochran
Amelia Earhart
Harriet Quimby
Amelia Earhart made history in 1928 as the first woman to fly solo nonstop across the Atlantic Ocean, though she was a passenger on a flight that year. Her later solo flight in 1932 cemented her status as an aviation pioneer. Earharts achievements inspired generations of pilots.
Which industry was a major contributor to the U.S. economic boom of the 1920s?
Textile
Shipbuilding
Automobile
Coal mining
The automobile industry, led by Fords Model T and assembly-line production, revolutionized manufacturing and spurred growth in related sectors like steel, rubber, and road construction. Car ownership soared, reshaping American society and the economy.
Which U.S. President endorsed the 19th Amendment, helping women secure the right to vote?
Warren G. Harding
Calvin Coolidge
Woodrow Wilson
Herbert Hoover
President Woodrow Wilson initially had reservations but ultimately supported the womens suffrage movement and urged Congress to pass the 19th Amendment. His endorsement in 1918 was pivotal in securing enough votes for ratification in 1920. Wilson later praised suffragists for their efforts.
What term described the illegal practice of transporting and selling alcohol during Prohibition?
Bootlegging
Smuggling
Moonshining
Speakeasy
Bootlegging referred to the illicit production, transportation, and sale of alcohol during Prohibition. It generated massive profits for organized crime syndicates. While moonshining focused on homemade spirits, bootlegging covered larger commercial operations.
What term described the homemade production of alcohol, often in clandestine stills, during Prohibition?
Moonshining
Rumbling
Rum-running
Ginning
Moonshining referred to the illicit distillation of homemade liquor, typically in hidden stills at night (by the light of the moon). It was widespread in rural areas to skirt Prohibition laws. Moonshine could be dangerous due to unregulated production methods.
Which amendment, ratified in 1933, officially repealed Prohibition?
21st Amendment
20th Amendment
22nd Amendment
19th Amendment
The 21st Amendment, ratified on December 5, 1933, repealed the 18th Amendment and ended Prohibition. It remains the only constitutional amendment to repeal another amendment. This shift acknowledged the policys failures and the need for alcohol regulation.
Which author published The Sun Also Rises in 1926, capturing the disillusionment of the postwar generation?
Gertrude Stein
Ernest Hemingway
T. S. Eliot
F. Scott Fitzgerald
Ernest Hemingways debut novel The Sun Also Rises (1926) portrays the Lost Generation of expatriates in Europe after World War I. His spare prose style and themes of alienation influenced 20th-century literature. The book remains a hallmark of modernist fiction.
What cultural movement centered in Harlem from the 1910s through the 1920s celebrated African American art, literature, and music?
Black Arts Movement
Harlem Renaissance
Civil Rights Movement
New Negro Movement
The Harlem Renaissance was a flourishing of African American culture in literature, art, music, and intellectual life centered in Harlem, New York. Figures like Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston, and Duke Ellington were central to this movement. It reshaped American culture and race relations.
Which design style, characterized by geometric shapes and bold ornamentation, dominated architecture and art in the 1920s?
Baroque Revival
Art Nouveau
Art Deco
Bauhaus
Art Deco emerged in the 1920s as a modern design movement emphasizing symmetry, geometric forms, and rich colors. Iconic examples include the Chrysler Building in New York. It influenced architecture, fashion, graphic design, and interior decoration.
Which event in October 1929 signaled the start of the Great Depression?
Stock Market Crash
Dust Bowl
Bank Holiday
Smoot-Hawley Tariff enactment
The Stock Market Crash of October 1929, often called Black Tuesday (October 29), wiped out millions in investments and triggered a severe economic downturn. Although not the sole cause, it is widely seen as the catalyst for the Great Depression. It led to massive unemployment and bank failures.
What name was given to the 19191920 series of U.S. federal raids aimed at suspected radicals and communists?
Palmer Raids
Alien Registration
Red Scare
Sedition Act
The Palmer Raids, led by Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer, targeted suspected anarchists, communists, and other radical leftists. Thousands were arrested without warrants, and many were deported. The raids exemplified the First Red Scares climate of fear.
Which mechanical device, demonstrated by John Logie Baird in 1925, laid the groundwork for modern television?
Radio
Cinema projector
Television
Phonograph
In 1925, Scottish inventor John Logie Baird demonstrated the first working mechanical television system, transmitting simple images over short distances. This breakthrough was an important step toward electronic television. His work spurred further development in broadcasting technology.
The Scopes Trial of 1925 challenged a Tennessee law prohibiting the teaching of what topic in public schools?
Modern art
Womens suffrage
Alcohol production
Evolution
The 1925 Scopes Trial, also known as the Monkey Trial, centered on Tennessee teacher John Scopes, who was accused of teaching Charles Darwins theory of evolution in violation of state law. The trial became a national debate over science and religion in education.
Who became the first female governor in United States history when she took office in Wyoming in 1925?
Miriam A. Ferguson
Ella Grasso
Lurleen Wallace
Nellie Tayloe Ross
Nellie Tayloe Ross was elected governor of Wyoming in 1924 and sworn in January 5, 1925, becoming the first female governor in U.S. history. She focused on issues like road improvement and agriculture. Ross later served as director of the U.S. Mint.
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Study Outcomes

  1. Recall Key Prohibition Milestones -

    Readers will be able to list major events and dates related to Prohibition, understanding how this policy shaped the social landscape of the 1920s.

  2. Identify Influential Jazz Age Figures -

    Readers will recognize prominent personalities - from legendary musicians to cultural icons - and describe their contributions to the Jazz Age.

  3. Describe Roaring Twenties Cultural Trends -

    Readers will explain defining trends such as flapper fashion, popular dance crazes, and the broader social shifts of the 1920s.

  4. Analyze the Impact of 1920s Music and Entertainment -

    Readers will evaluate how jazz, radio broadcasts, and early film influenced public taste and mirrored the era's vibrancy.

  5. Evaluate the Legacy of 1920 Trivia Facts -

    Readers will assess fun and surprising trivia from the 1920s, reinforcing their grasp of Roaring Twenties history in an engaging way.

Cheat Sheet

  1. Prohibition and the 18th Amendment -

    Enacted in 1920, the 18th Amendment banned the manufacture and sale of alcohol, spawning an era of speakeasies and organized bootlegging (National Archives). Remember "SPEAK" as Speakeasy, Prohibition, Enforcement, Alcohol, Kickbacks to recall key terms of 1920's trivia. Despite a drop in reported consumption, illicit production grew by 40% by 1925 according to the Journal of American History.

  2. Rise of Jazz and Radio Broadcasting -

    The term "Jazz Age" popularized by F. Scott Fitzgerald captures how jazz tunes and radio broadcasts revolutionized 1920 trivia culture (Library of Congress). A handy mnemonic - "RADIO": Records, Airwaves, DJs, Innovation, Outlets - will help you recall the five pillars of this media boom. By 1922, over 500 US radio stations were on air, cementing music as a national pastime.

  3. Women's Suffrage and the Flapper Revolution -

    With the ratification of the 19th Amendment in 1920, American women gained voting rights, fueling social shifts that led to flapper culture (Smithsonian Institution). Use "VOTE" as a memory trick - Visibility, Opportunity, Trends, Equality - to remember the era's breakthroughs. Flappers symbolized newfound freedoms in fashion, dance, and attitudes toward social norms.

  4. Key Figures of the Roaring Twenties -

    Iconic personalities like Louis Armstrong, Al Capone, and Zelda Fitzgerald defined 1920 trivia through breakthroughs in music, organized crime, and literature (American Historical Association). To memorize them, think "AMZ" - Armstrong, Mobsters, Zelda - capturing cultural and criminal extremes of the decade. Their legacies illustrate how the Jazz Age's glamour intertwined with darker undercurrents.

  5. Economic Boom and the Stock Market Surge -

    The mass production techniques pioneered by Henry Ford's assembly line drove consumerism, with Model T output jumping from 10,000 to 1.8 million cars between 1919 and 1927 (Federal Reserve). Remember "CARDS" - Consumption, Assembly, Roaring profits, Dividends, Stock market - to link industrial growth to the 1920s bull market. This prosperity set the stage for the 1929 crash and the Great Depression.

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