The year 1905. How things have changed!
THE YEAR 1905
This will boggle your mind, I know it did mine!
The year is 1905.
One hundred and two years ago.
What a difference a century makes!
Here are some of the U.S. statistics for the Year 1905:
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.
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 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
$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 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 that prohibited poor people from entering into their country for any reason.
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.
Back then pharmacist said, "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 help.
There were about 230 reported murders in the entire U.S.
Try to imagine what it may be like in another 100 years. It staggers the mind.
This will boggle your mind, I know it did mine!
The year is 1905.
One hundred and two years ago.
What a difference a century makes!
Here are some of the U.S. statistics for the Year 1905:
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.
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 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
$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 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 that prohibited poor people from entering into their country for any reason.
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.
Back then pharmacist said, "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 help.
There were about 230 reported murders in the entire U.S.
Try to imagine what it may be like in another 100 years. It staggers the mind.
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Only 20% of adults couldn't read- maybe we chould go back to the 1905 school system. 0 -
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A ride on the "L", the elevated rail line thru Philadelphia, cost a nickel. 0 -
I actually find very few things to be nostalgic about 0 -
oh yes. I live in the, uh, low rent part of town in St. Louis, and going around town looking at the buildings and houses, you can tell when the town was booming- 1905 or thereabouts was when most of this whole town was built. then another boom around the late 50's, mid 60's, when Gas Light Square was one of the hopping-est places in the country, all the big names in show business went there to party. but nowhere near as much as around the turn of the century when the 1904 World's Fair brought so much tourism dollars and attention to the town. before that, it was a smaller industrial hub; it became the 4th largest city in the nation after chicago, new york and philadelphia almost over night. so it was quite modern and fresh.
because there was so much building and expansion right at that point in time, there is a lot left to see and you can really get a sense of what life was like back then. it really was the 'gateway to the west', as they called it, because the other side of the river and all the rest of the country to the pacific ocean was still the wild west, indians and all.
so while some of it was quite modern from the influences of the World's Fair, most of the residential neighborhoods give you the obvious feel of a town on the edge of the frontier. I would have loved to live here at that point in time. (it sucks now) all you have to do is walk around and look at the architecture.
I was thinking about doing a walking tour/photo essay about the architecture of the houses around here -which are all from that point in time- but it would take too much time to make it, too many pictures to load, and for what, a day or two of viewing? it wouldn't be worth it. but it almost would be. some of these houses look very nice even by today's standards.
my point is, you can talk about what it was like, but if you want to see what it was like, it's still here if you care to do some sightseeing.0
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