I got this in my e-mail today. Not 1918 exactly, but close, and gives you an idea of what life might have been like during the pandemic.
The year is 1906. One hundred years ago. What a difference a century makes! Here are some of the U.S. statistics for the Year 1906
The average life expectancy in the U.S. was 47.
A three-minute call from Denver to New York City cost eleven dollars.
There were only 8,000 cars in the U.S., and only 144 miles of paved roads.
The maximum speed limit in most cities was 10 mph.
Alabama, Mississippi, Iowa, and Tennessee were each more heavily populated than California.
With a mere 1.4 million people, California was only the 21st most populous state in the Union.
The tallest structure in the world was the Eiffel Tower!
The average wage in the US. was 22 cents per hour.
The average U.S. worker made between $200 and $400 per year.
A competent accountant could expect to earn $2000 per year, a dentist $2,500 per year, a veterinarian between $1,500 and $4,000 per year, and a mechanical engineer about $5,000 per year.
More than 95 percent of all births in the U.S. took place at HOME.
Ninety percent of all U.S. doctors had NO COLLEGE EDUCATION! Instead, they attended so-called medical schools, many of which were condemned in the press AND the government as “sub-standard.”
Sugar cost four cents a pound.
Eggs were fourteen cents a dozen.
Coffee was fifteen cents a pound.
Most women only washed their hair once a month, and used borax or egg yolks for shampoo.
Canada passed a law that prohibited poor people from entering into their country for any reason.
The Five leading causes of death in the U.S. were: 1. Pneumonia and influenza 2. Tuberculosis 3. Diarrhea 4. Heart disease 5. Stroke
The American flag had 45 stars. Arizona , Oklahoma, New Mexico, Hawaii, and Alaska hadn’t been admitted to the Union yet.
The population of Las Vegas, Nevada, was only 30!!!!
Crossword puzzles, canned beer, and ice tea hadn’t been invented yet.
There was no Mother’s Day or Father’s Day.
Two out of every 10 U.S. adults couldn’t read or write. Only 6 percent of all Americans had graduated from high school.
Marijuana, heroin, and morphine were all available over the counter at the local corner drugstores. Pharmacists said, “Heroin clears the complexion, gives buoyancy to the mind, regulates the stomach and bowels, and is, in fact, a perfect guardian of health.”
Eighteen percent of households in the U.S. had at least one full-time servant or domestic help.
There were about 230 reported murders in the ENTIRE U.S.A.!
Now I forwarded this from someone else without typing it myself, and sent it to you and others all over the United States, possibly the world, in a matter of seconds !
Now having read this try to imagine what it may be like in another 100 years.
date, population, change, Average Annual % change
July 1, 1917 population = 103,268,000 change of + 1,307,000, %change= 1.27
July 1, 1918, population = 103,208,000 change of −60,000, %change= −0.06
First post. Too many asterisks…
Too many asterisks…
… will make things go blooey every time. If you want to create a horizontal divider put four dashes, e.g. ----, on a line by themselves.
Pogge…
Another change since 1918:
Manual typewriters did not change your formatting without your permission!
With a mere 1.4 million people, California was only the 21st most populous state in the Union.
With real estate prices the way they are, that may come to pass again!! ;-)
Bronco Bill - yup. New York’s taxes aren’t far behind.
My late father-in-law was born in 1902. We went to a museum to which he had donated quite a few exhibits and as we went through the museum it was like having our very own guide to that time period because he talked about how it was living during those years.