Born in 1974
Turns 52 in 2026
Gifts for someone born in 1974
1974 Front PageTheir name. The news from their year.Unframed from $30.00Add their name
Their birth chartThe sky as astrology reads it, cast for one birth.Unframed from $30.00
The Years We Were BornThe whole family, together in years.Unframed from $30.00
Our Story timelineTheir life, told in your words.Unframed from $30.00
Front Page: United States edition. The year is filled in; add their name in the editor. “Your name” is a placeholder. Light news is selected. A new keepsake, not an original newspaper.
BACK TO 1974 · United States
A little history to go with their gift.
Ernő Rubik made a working cube to help teach three-dimensional movement and structure; its hidden mechanism later turned it into a worldwide puzzle. ABBA won Eurovision with Waterloo, and West Germany defeated the Netherlands in Munich to win the football World Cup.
What happened in 1974?
ABBA win with Waterloo
ABBA won the Eurovision Song Contest with Waterloo on 6 April 1974, turning a Swedish pop group into an international phenomenon.
Official Charts Company · European Broadcasting Union / Eurovision Song Contest
The Nobel prizes mark achievement
The 1974 Nobel Prizes honoured work by Antony Hewish, Martin Ryle, Harry Martinson, Eyvind Johnson and the peace activist Seán MacBride.
Chris Evert wins her first Wimbledon title
Chris Evert defeated Olga Morozova in the 1974 Wimbledon final, winning her first singles title at the All England Club.
Women’s Tennis Association · The Independent (reprinted from The Times)
Lucy’s discovery reshaped the human story
Donald Johanson and his team found Lucy, a partial early hominin skeleton, at Hadar in Ethiopia.
Firsts and new ideas
Mariner 10 reaches Mercury
Mariner 10 made the first Mercury flyby on 29 March 1974, using Venus's gravity to reach a planet previously seen only from Earth.
The F-16 prototype takes flight
The YF-16 prototype made its official first flight on 2 February 1974, introducing a lightweight fighter built around agility and electronic control.
Number ones and music in 1974
Chart positions belong to the country and chart named in each record.
The Way We Were reaches No. 1
Barbra Streisand’s “The Way We Were” reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 dated February 2, 1974.
Billboard; authored by Fred Bronson · HISTORY / A&E Television Networks
ABBA releases Waterloo single
ABBA released Waterloo in Sweden on March 4, 1974, a month before the group won the Eurovision Song Contest with the song.
Prices and everyday money in 1974
United States figures in the money of the time. Units and sources matter: these are not today's prices.
| Item or measure | Then | Unit and source |
|---|---|---|
| Domestic first-class letter postage | 10¢ | letter weighing one ounce or less United States Postal Service; TIME |
| Federal statutory minimum wage for workers covered before the 1966 amendments | $2.00 | hour U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division; U.S. House of Representatives; Congressional Record via Congress.gov |
| Leaded regular motor gasoline, U.S. city average including taxes | 53.2¢ | U.S. gallon U.S. Senate; Congressional Record via GovInfo; U.S. Bureau of the Census |
| White pan bread, annual U.S. average retail price | 34.5¢ | one-pound loaf U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service; U.S. General Accounting Office, GAO Review, Summer 1978 |
Planning the birthday
Someone born in 1974 turns 52 in 2026. Before their birthday they are one year younger. Choose the birth year for the print; add the full date in the editor if you know it.
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