From Theodore Roosevelt, Upton Sinclair, and the NAACP to the 16th–19th Amendments, U.S. entry into WWI, Prohibition, and 1924 quotas.
Golden rules (General American pronunciation): vowels and silent or glide letters (w, h, y) carry no digit · silent letters are ignored (knife /naɪf/ → 28) · doubled letters count once (bell → 95, hammer → 34) · sound, never spelling, decides.
| Date | Event | Peg word | IPA | Digits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1901 | Theodore Roosevelt becomes President after McKinley's assassination, championing the Square Deal | saw +tie /sɑ/ + /taɪ/ | /sɑ/ + /taɪ/ | 01 |
| 1904 | Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine announced; U.S. begins construction of the Panama Canal | saw +oar /sɑ/ + /oɹ/ | /sɑ/ + /oɹ/ | 04 |
| 1906 | Upton Sinclair's The Jungle spurs the Pure Food and Drug Act and Meat Inspection Act | saw +shoe /sɑ/ + /ʃu/ | /sɑ/ + /ʃu/ | 06 |
| 1909 | W. E. B. Du Bois and multiracial civil-rights leaders establish the NAACP | soap /soʊp/ | /soʊp/ | 09 |
| 1913 | 16th Amendment (income tax), 17th Amendment (direct Senate elections), and Federal Reserve Act enacted | tie +ham /taɪ/ + /ˈhæm/ | /taɪ/ + /ˈhæm/ | 13 |
| 1914 | World War I begins in Europe (U.S. proclaims neutrality); Panama Canal opens to shipping | deer /dɪɹ/ | /dɪɹ/ | 14 |
| 1917 | Zimmermann Telegram and unrestricted submarine warfare bring the United States into World War I | duck /dʌk/ | /dʌk/ | 17 |
| 1918 | Woodrow Wilson issues the Fourteen Points; Armistice ends World War I fighting (November 11) | hat +wave /hæt/ + /weɪv/ | /hæt/ + /weɪv/ | 18 |
| 1919 | Senate rejects the Treaty of Versailles; 18th Amendment (Prohibition) ratified; Red Summer and First Red Scare | tub /tʌb/ | /tʌb/ | 19 |
| 1920 | 19th Amendment guarantees women's voting rights nationwide; first commercial radio station begins broadcasting | hen +saw /hɛn/ + /sɑ/ | /hɛn/ + /sɑ/ | 20 |
| 1924 | Immigration Act of 1924 establishes strict national-origins quotas; Indian Citizenship Act grants U.S. citizenship to all Native Americans | hen +arrow /hɛn/ + /ˈæ.ɹoʊ/ | /hɛn/ + /ˈæ.ɹoʊ/ | 24 |
1901 — On the White House stone terrace, a carpenter's steel saw rests on the left while a striped silk tie hangs neatly on the right as Theodore Roosevelt becomes President after McKinley's assassination and champions the Square Deal. (s → 0 · t → 1)
1904 — Beside the newly dug Panama Canal embankment, a toothed steel saw leans on the left while a long wooden oar stands on the right as the United States announces the Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine and begins canal construction. (s → 0 · ɹ → 4)
1906 — Along a cobbled Chicago factory street, a gleaming steel saw leans on the left while a polished brown leather shoe sits on the right in the year Upton Sinclair's The Jungle spurs the Pure Food and Drug Act and Meat Inspection Act. (s → 0 · ʃ → 6)
1909 — In a sunlit New York parlor, a clean creamy-white oval bar of soap gleams on a ceramic dish amid delicate white bubbles as W. E. B. Du Bois and multiracial civil-rights leaders establish the NAACP. (s·p → 09)
1913 — On the marble steps of the Capitol, a striped silk tie drapes on the left while a glazed spiral bone-in roast ham sits on a silver platter on the right as the 16th and 17th Amendments and the Federal Reserve Act become law. (t → 1 · m → 3)
1914 — On the lush green bank overlooking the newly opened Panama Canal locks, a quiet antlered deer stands peacefully as World War I breaks out in Europe and the United States proclaims neutrality. (d·ɹ → 14)
1917 — Across choppy North Atlantic swells near distant convoy ships, a green-headed mallard duck paddles boldly westward as the Zimmermann Telegram and unrestricted submarine warfare bring the United States into World War I. (d·k → 17)
1918 — On a quiet coastal meadow at sunrise on November 11, a wide-brimmed felt hat rests on the left while a tall sunlit ocean wave crests on the right as Woodrow Wilson's Fourteen Points guide the Armistice ending World War I fighting. (t → 1 · v → 8)
1919 — Standing alone on stone terrace pavers in 1919, a gleaming white porcelain claw-foot tub fills only with clear sparkling water as Prohibition takes hold, the Senate rejects the Treaty of Versailles, and the Red Summer and First Red Scare sweep the country. (t·b → 19)
1920 — On a sunny wooden town hall porch under early radio wires, a russet brown hen perches on the left while a steel carpenter's saw rests on the right as the 19th Amendment guarantees women's voting rights nationwide and commercial radio begins broadcasting. (n → 2 · s → 0)
1924 — Beside a harbor stone gateway, a speckled brown hen steps onto the flagstones on the left while a feathered wooden arrow rests across low stones on the right as the Immigration Act of 1924 sets strict quotas and the Indian Citizenship Act grants citizenship to all Native Americans. (n → 2 · ɹ → 4)