25 photos of life in Washington, DC 100 years ago

The 19th Amendment of the Constitution was ratified on Aug. 18, 1920, enshrining in law that one could “not be denied” the vote on account of sex. In practice, however, the amendment only won the vote for white women, with Black women and other groups, including Asian American immigrants, still barred from the voting booth. While the milestone changed the face of American voting rights, it would take decades for minority women to gain their voting rights.

Sen. Pat Harrison plays umpire at a boys’ baseball game in the summer of 1921. Prior to serving as senator of Mississippi, Harrison was valedictorian of his class in 1899, attended Louisiana State University on a baseball scholarship, and pitched for a semi-professional baseball team.

Democratic and Republican page boys enjoy a snowball fight at the Capitol in this photo from December 1923. Republican President Calvin Coolidge did not join in the winter games.

A man stands at the entrance to The Sport Mart, a sporting goods store that also sold the latest in phonographs and records.

When Congress failed to appropriate money for public pools, children decided to make a splash in the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool. The children waved to the photographer while wading with a toy sailboat.

Members of the Democratic National Committee gather in front of the Hotel Lafayette in 1924. The year marked a wild convention that took 16 days and a record 103 ballots to select a nominee.

Onlookers gather to examine the wreckage in the aftermath of a car accident in 1923. With few laws and safety measures around driving, accidents and deaths were frequent as cars became a common mode of transportation in the ’20s.

A group of schoolboys competes in a track meet as onlookers cheer and the leader triumphantly crosses the finish line.

Students at the Sidwell Friends School take part in an annual May Festival in 1920. The coed Quaker day school for pre-kindergartners to high schoolers was founded in 1883.

A half-dozen photographers take a break on the steps of the Capitol building and pose for a photo while a couple in the background enjoy the view.

The Washington Herald election banner waves on top of D.J. Kaufman’s, an iconic department store located in downtown D.C. This store was part of a chain founded in 1871 that sold clothing, footwear, bedding, furniture, beauty products, and housewares. Its motto was “Money's Worth or Money Back.” It was acquired by Macy’s in 2006.

A woman from the Potomac Boat Club participates in the canoe regatta at the Tidal Basin Carnival in this 1924 photo.

A professor from the Smithsonian Institution poses with the bones of a Diplodocus dinosaur in 1924. The Diplodocus, discovered in 1899 on a high-profile expedition funded by Andrew Carnegie, was a famous discovery. The fossils were replicated and sent around the world, making it a well-known dinosaur in the early 20th century.

A pair of women examine a Hottentot plant in the United States Botanic Garden with the Capitol building in the background. The U.S. Botanic Garden, the oldest continually operating garden in the country, began blooming in 1820.

A man enjoys a leisurely afternoon of fishing on the Potomac River as a dog sniffs a bottle of liquor from his back pocket. During Prohibition "hooch hounds" were specially trained to detect alcohol.

Vendors sell their goods from various stalls in the expansive Center Market. Today the National Archives resides on the former site of the bustling market.

A newsboy sells copies of The Washington Daily News on the street for 1 cent each. The headline ‘Millionaire tax rends G.O.P.’ was the talk of the town in 1921.

A diver splashes into the water from a floating wooden structure on the Potomac River in the summer of 1923. George Washington built his home on the Potomac River, dubbing it the “Nation’s River,” which was designated an American Heritage River by President Bill Clinton in 1998.

Young people gather for a summertime music event in the park in 1921. One hundred years later, concertgoers still cram together to listen to music.

Can you name the dapper dudes milking a goat in the sun in Maryland in 1924? Dr. W. Thurnheer is the gentleman showing Secretary Henry Wallace the fine art of goat milking. Henry Wallace was the secretary of agriculture from 1921 to 1924. His son, Henry A. Wallace, also became secretary of agriculture and went on to be vice president during the third term of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's four-term run.

Members of the Potomac Boat Club paddle past the Key Bridge in Georgetown. The Key Bridge, whose full name is the Francis Scott Key Bridge, connects Georgetown to Rosslyn, Virginia.

In this photo from 1925, students enjoy the open windows of a Ford Motor Company school bus riding through a residential neighborhood in Rockville, Maryland.

A group of debutantes in matching waitress uniforms gather at an outdoor horse show.

Two small children share a drink at the annual White House Easter Egg Roll in 1922. The Easter Egg Roll is a White House tradition that began in 1878 when President Rutherford B. Hayes invited children to roll eggs on the South Lawn.

Students compete in a pie-eating contest at Jefferson Middle School Academy. Max Schwartz was declared the champion at the 1923 event.