2018 July 31 Tuesday in Grimes Iowa
61° and hazy because of the humidity in the air at sunrise. It reached a high of 85° and was partly cloudy however the humidity dropped from 100% to 50%.
Today would have been my mother’s 111th birthday.
On that same day that my mother was born the Wright brothers made the first powered flight of a manner heavier than air machine. Now twelve men have walked on the moon and five hundred and thirty six people have been to space outside the Earth’s atmosphere.
Here are some U.S. statistics for the Year 1907*
The average life expectancy in theU.S.was 47 years old. Only
14 percent of the homes in the U.S. had
a bathtub.
Only 8 percent of the homes had a telephone. A
three-minute call from Denver to New York City Cost $11.00.
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 U.S. 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 made $2,500 per year, A veterinarian$1,500 per year, A mechanical engineer about $5,000 per year.
More than 95 percent of all births in theU.S. took place at HOME 90% of all U.S. doctors had NO COLLEGE EDUCATION!Instead, they attended so-called medical schools, many of which were condemned by the press AND the government as ‘substandard.’
PRICES! 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 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. 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.’
There were about 230 reported murders in the ENTIRE U.S.A
We went for breakfast at Cozy Cafe.
We stopped at the post office next.
We arrived early at the senior center so we helped to put the center pieces, salt, pepper, and other things on the tables. After I got the games out, we played some Rummikub until Joyce arrived. We switched to Fast Track. We were part way through the game when Sue arrived and joined the game in progress as my partner. We lost. However we won the next one. Then it was time for lunch.
As we were finishing lunch we had a couple of special speakers from South Africa.
The pastor of the church that shares the Grimes Community Complex with the senior center (and other things) and his sister were born in South Africa. He came to the states a couple of years with his family (wife and daughters).
His sister works as a librarian for their Parliament (think Library of Congress). It was interesting to learn that their country has eleven official languages. And you thought having everything printed in English and Spanish was a pain. There are literally hundreds more languages spoken other than the 11 official ones.
They also have three capitals that co- govern. Minimum wage is equal to $1.25. However, most people work as casual labor and pay no taxes. And forget any preconceived notions of what the country is like. It is a very modern society.
Oh, by the way, did you notice that they are Caucasian? Yes, Europeans arrived there in the 1500s just like they did in North America. They are known as the rainbow nation because it is so very multicultural.
Sunset tonight was not very impressive.
However, the clouds in the Eastern sky at sunset were very impressive.
G’nite y’all!
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All content (except quotations) © 2018 Thomas E. Williams
*Life in 1907
RVing Fulltime with Tom and Ella 