1915

What Was Happening in 1915

Mud, blood, and poison gas — the war's horror becomes undeniable as the trenches consume a generation.

Born in

By the Numbers in 1915

World Population

UK Life Expectancy

49.3 years

US Life Expectancy

50.3 years

Gold Price (per oz)

$20.67

Dow Jones Index

81

US National Debt

Sovereign Nations

53

How Much Did Things Cost in 1915?

ItemUKUS
Average house price£270$3,300
Average salary£78$610
Pint of milk2½d
Loaf of bread3d
Dozen eggs1s 4d36¢
Pint of beer3d

Technology and Inventions in 1915

The war drove rapid technological development. Poison gas was used for the first time at Ypres. Tanks were being developed in secret. Aircraft were evolving from observers to fighters with synchronised machine guns. Telephone networks expanded to coordinate military operations.

  • Germany deployed chlorine gas at the Second Battle of Ypres — the first large-scale chemical weapon attack
  • The first fighter aircraft with a synchronised machine gun entered service
  • Einstein published his General Theory of Relativity
  • The first transcontinental telephone call made from New York to San Francisco

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More About 1915

What Was Happening — A journey through the years