The Great Gatsby
Timeline

1892

*James Gatz is born in North Dakota.

1910

*Gatz attends St. Olaf College for two weeks.
*Gatz acquires work on the yacht of his future idol Dan Cody.
*James Gatz changes his name to Jay Gatsby.
*Gatsby sails with Cody to the West Indies and Barbary Coast.
*Cody dies and his mistress Ella Kaye uses legal devices to take Gatsby's part of the inheritance.
*Gatsby is penniless but educated.

1915

*Nick Carraway graduates from New Haven (Yale University) and fights in World War I.
*Nick returns to the Midwest to begin a career.

1917
*In October Jay Gatsby and Daisy Fay fall in love in Louisville Kentucky, but Gatsby goes to the Great War, World War I.
*Gatsby receives medals in Europe for his service in the war.
*He also attends Oxford for five months.

1918

*Gatsby's tour in Europe was around the length of a year.

*Gatsby returned from the war, until the time of the story, he started a profitable business ina pharmaceutical field. With a little business on the side, selling ingredients to bootleggers, Gatsby stakes out a fortune. This illegal operation brought the most wealth to Jay Gatsby.

1919

*In June Daisy Fay marries Tom Buchanan.
*In August Tom has an affair with the chambermaid.

1920

*In April Daisy had her littler girl and they went to France for a year.

*The Buchanans move to Chicago, then to East Egg on Long Island, New York.

1922

*Nick Carraway moves to West Egg on Long Island, New York, to learn the bond business. He rents a house, which is next to Gatsby's mansion.
*In June 7 Nick visits Daisy (his cousin) and Tom Buchanan at their home in East Egg, where he meets Jordan Baker, a controversial professional golfer.
*In June to early July Nick and Tom take Myrtle, Tom's mistress, to Morningside Heights, an apartment in New York.
*They have a small party consisting of Nick, Tom, Myrtle, Myrtle's sister Catherine, and the McKee couple. Tom Buchanan slaps Myrtle for disobeying his orders.
*Nick has a short affair with a girl from Jersey City.
*Nick becomes involved with Jordan Baker.
*Gatsby throws another party and invites Nick.
*Nick meets Jordan Baker at the party and, in pursuit of Gatsby, they encounter Owl Eyes.
*Nick finally meets Gatsby, a "young roughneck.

*Gatsby drives Nick to New York for lunch where Gatsby reveals his past to Nick.
*Meyer Wolfsheim, a con-artist, is introduced as Gatsby's partner, which leads one to suspect Gatsby's finances are derived by illegal means.
*Jordan Baker reveals the romantic history of Daisy and Gatsby to Nick.
*Gatsby asks Nick indirectly through Jordan to arrange a meeting for himself and Daisy. Nick agrees.
*In Late July Gatsby and Daisy are reunited at Nick's house.
*Tom Buchanan and Gatsby finally meet at Gatsby's house while Tom is riding with the Sloanes.
*On one Saturday Tom and Daisy attend one of Gatsby's parties. They argue and Tom accuses Gatsby of being a bootlegger.
*In late August Gatsby has Daisy for his own, calls off all the parties, and dismisses all his servants.
*George Wilson finds out about Myrtle's affair. Wilson wants to take Myrtle out West.

*It is Nick's 30th birthday.
*Gatsby, Nick, and Jordan visit the Buchanans for lunch.
*The Buchanan daughter, Pammy, is introduced.
*On the last day of summer Tom witnesses the passion between Daisy and Gatsby.

*They go to New York for the afternoon. Myrtle sees Tom drive by in the yellow Rolls Royce.
*They rent a suite at the Plaza Hotel at 4 o'clock in the afternoon.
*Tom confronts Gatsby with the knowledge of his affair with Daisy.
*Daisy returns to her husband and crushes Gatsby's dreams.
*Daisy and Gatsby return home in Gatsby's yellow Rolls Royce.
*Daisy hits Myrtle, instantly killing her, but keeps on driving.
*Tom discovers the accident upon his return home and tells George it was Gatsby's car.
*Daisy and Tom reconcile and leave Gatsby by himself.

Fall 1922

*Nick breaks up with Jordan Baker.
*Gatsby is shot by George Wilson while lying in his pool. George then kills himself.

Late Fall 1922

*Nick tries to find Gatsby's friends to attend his funeral, but they have all conveniently disappeared.
*Henry C. Gatz, Gatsby's father, arrives for the funeral as well as Nick, Owl Eyes, and some servants.
*Nick returns to the Midwest