Today is my grandfather’s 100th birthday. He died in the seventies when I was around five, but I still have vivid memories of him and visiting his house.
His name was Richard, but everyone in the family called him Mo. That was short for Moshe. There are several men in my family who were given Hebrew names, but used English/American ones their whole lives.
This is a photo of he and my grandmother on their wedding day. I think they were married in the 1930s.
I did a quick check and I thought I’d share with you what I discovered:
1915. 2015
Woodrow Wilson President Barack Obama
$3200 Buying a House $177,600
$2005 (which is Buying a Car $31,252
$46,879 in today’s prices)
$.15 Gas/gallon $2.29
$687 (for a man) Take-home $53,046
Income
$.07 Loaf of bread 2/$5 on sale
$.34 Dozen Eggs $3.49
$.09 Quart of Milk $1
$.26 Steak/lb. $5.99
$.10 – .15 Movie tickets $11
$.02 1st Class Stamp $.49
There was no minimum wage (except in certain places and only for women and children.)
A recent headline (from May, 1915) would have been about the sinking of the Lusitania.
(Source of Price Differences: http://money.usnews.com/money/personal-finance/articles/2015/01/02/a-glimpse-at-your-expenses-100-years-ago?)
