It's amazing what we take for granted. And 100 years was really not that long ago.
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| Celtic Radio Community > General Discussion > One Hundred Years Ago... |
| Posted by: gettin-away 23-May-2004, 08:02 PM |
| THE YEAR 1904 Maybe this will boggle your mind, I know it did mine! The year is 1904 ... one hundred years ago. What a difference a century makes! Here are some of the U.S. statistics for 1904: The average life expectancy in the U.S. was 47 years. Only 14 percent of the homes in the U.S. had a bathtub. Only 8 percent of the homes had a telephone. 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 residents, 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 U.S. was 22 cents an 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. physicians had no college education. Instead, they attended medical schools, many of which were condemned in the press and by the government as "substandard." 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 prohibiting poor people from entering the 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 30!!! Crossword puzzles, canned beer, and iced tea hadn't been invented. There was no Mother's Day or Father's Day. Two of 10 U.S. adults couldn't read or write. Only 6 percent of all Americans had graduated high school. Marijuana, heroin, and morphine were all available over the counter at corner drugstores. According to one pharmacist, "Heroin clears the complexion, gives buoyancy to the mind, regulates the stomach and bowels, and is, in fact, a perfect guardian of health." (Shocking!) Eighteen percent of households in the U.S. had at least one full-time servant or domestic. There were only about 230 reported murders in the entire U.S. And I forwarded this from someone else without typing it myself, and sent it to you in a matter of seconds! Try to imagine what it may be like in another 100 years ... it staggers the mind. |
| Posted by: Annabelle 23-May-2004, 09:27 PM |
| Wow! In another 100 years I just want the wash to do load, fold and put it's self away. |
| Posted by: Raven 23-May-2004, 09:34 PM |
| I would have died at age 13 (from diabetes) had I been born 40 years sooner. (if not sooner) Just to help keep the average low It's amazing what we take for granted. And 100 years was really not that long ago. |
| Posted by: tsargent62 24-May-2004, 06:48 AM |
| My daughter probably would've died from an infection she got when she stubbed a dirty toe on something in the yard. It was a bad infection that required a few days in the hospital. Anti-biotics hadn't been invented yet 100 years ago. |
| Posted by: silverdragon 24-May-2004, 07:25 AM |
| I would have been dead of pneumonia. Twice. |
| Posted by: gettin-away 24-May-2004, 08:07 AM |
| When my daughter was born in 1981, three months premature, I was told if she had been born just a couple of years earlier she wouldn't have lived. She will graduate college next spring. gettin-away |
| Posted by: gtrplr 24-May-2004, 08:36 AM | ||||
In September 1993, from the US Dept. of Education:
In 1904, 20% of the population was functionally illiterate. In 1993, 20% of the population was functionally illiterate.  |
| Posted by: Aaediwen 24-May-2004, 09:59 AM |
| funny what a few years will do, isn't it. And 20 years ago isn't any less shocking either. |
| Posted by: barddas 24-May-2004, 10:07 AM |
| It is amazing! Now if we could only *NOT* take these things for granted. |
| Posted by: Raven 24-May-2004, 11:18 AM |
| [/QUOTE] In 1904, 20% of the population was functionally illiterate. In 1993, 20% of the population was functionally illiterate. [/QUOTE]It's just unbelievable to me that this many people can not know who their parents are  |
| Posted by: gtrplr 24-May-2004, 11:20 AM | ||
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