Above is 4 generations of women. Aunt Johnnie, my Grammie, me and Nadia. Nadia is trying to escape and get to her dad who is taking the photos.
This post is very long in coming, but here goes. On November 10th my Grammie’s Aunt Johnnie turned 100 years old. She is an amazing woman and we drove down to Clifton, TX to celebrate with her. My Grammie has really great stories to tell about her. For example she was a farmer’s wife and she made all the meals everyday from scratch for her husband and the ranch hands – day in and day out. Long before the great technology we have today to make a housewife’s life easier. Seriously – this reminds me of how stinkin’ spoiled I am with my auto dishwasher, microwave and washer/dryer.
My favorite story to repeat is that she mowed her own lawn until she was 95!!!!!! Then she finally decided to hire someone. What a character. She moved into a nursing home last January because of a couple of bad colds that forced her to be put on oxygen full time. I just wanted to share these photos with you because I have never been to a 100th birthday party (or known anyone who turned 100) and how often do you have a 100 year old and a 1 year old together?
P.S. Alan reminded me below that I should have said “Thank You” to all the wonderful people who mailed her birthday cards. She had a whole gift bag full and her 80 year old niece was planning on reading them all to her the next day and telling her who they were from. At the very bottom I have included a cool thing that the Bonderud’s sent her about what life was like 100 years ago in the US.
These are a few interesting facts about how life has changed in the United States since November 1907, 100 years ago this month:
- The average life expectancy was 47 years.
- Only 14 percent of the homes had a bathtub.
- Only 8 percent of the homes had a telephone.
- There were 8,000 cars and 144 miles of paved roads.
- The max speed limit in most cities was 10 mph.
- The tallest structure in the world was the Eiffel Tower.
- The average wage in 1907 was 22 cents per hour.
- The average worker made between $200 and $400 per year.
- A competent accountant could expect to earn $2000 per year, a dentist $2,500, a veterinarian between $1,500 and $4,000, and a mechanical engineer $5,000 per year.
- More than 95 percent of all births took place at HOME.
- Ninety percent of all doctors had NO COLLEGE EDUCATION! Instead, they attended so-called medical schools, many of which were condemned in the press AND the government as “substandard.”
- Sugar cost four cents a pound. Eggs were fourteen cents a dozen. Coffee was fifteen cents a pound.
- 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 leading causes of death were pneumonia & influenza, tuberculosis, diarrhea, heart disease, stroke.
- The American flag had 45 stars.
- 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 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. Back then 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 had at least one full-time servant or domestic help.
- There were about 230 reported murders in the entire U.S.A.