Hi guys! My mother sent me this email…. I know, I know…But she’s a very wonderful and sweet woman and is totally hypnotized by the internet and especially these types of spammy/urban mythy emails. And she’s strong willed!
FYI: Mom’s 73 and won her country club’s Women’s Golf Championship for the fifth time this year (and it’s a GOLF and TENNIS CLUB!!! Members are all ages and they play for blood! It’s totally like watching that movie, “300” about the Spartans!).
For those that don’t play golf, (you are wise, as it is an addiction!) this means NEVER bet folding money against my Mom on a golf course. I wouldn’t! I just give her the money in the parking lot and she doesn't tell anyone. After all, she is a southern lady…
Anyway, if you can manage to wade through the (frankly, interesting) facts of the year 1907, I’ve added some information toward the end that I discovered when trying to validate the facts in the original email (I did not end up validating any of it, so you are on your own there!).
Son,
This will boggle your mind, I know it did mine! The year was 1907; One hundred years ago... What a difference a century makes! (Your grandmother was born in 1904, for relativity’s sake.)
Mom
- 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 only 8,000 cars and only 144 miles of paved roads.
- The maximum 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 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 took place at HOME .
- Ninety percent of al 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 were:
- Pneumonia and 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 iced 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 USA!
OK, thank you for reading the above material. Some I knew. Some I didn’t. And I was sad that there was no direct real estate info in there, so I began searching.
And what I found was gruesome. Have you heard of “The PANIC of 1907”? I had not. Probably due to those rotten public schools, or my purposeful disregard to reading the material assigned therein.
Anyway, “The Panic of 1907” began with a run on the banks (I’m paraphrasing here…I’m NO expert!). Just like in “It’s a Wonderful Life!” And there is a wonderful history of the year at the link below.
Where it does tie into our real estate market? I believe, it shows the somewhat obvious, but here are “the facts, Jack”; That markets are indeed cyclical. This “Panic” deeply affected the foundations of banks, trust companies, the stock market, and real estate.
And, it was not the first such panic, (others occurred in 1873, 1884, 1890, and 1893), but was, generally speaking, the last of such significance (hopefully). This panic led to the creation of the Federal Reserve Bank, which later led to the creation of the FDIC, insuring deposits made at qualifying institutions.
So, does this ring a bell with you regarding the current state of many of our lending institutions? It does with me! Maybe we'll be better for it, once we get through it! We just need stamina and perseverance? I'm sure my grandmother's mother would say so, were she able.
Anyway, I hope you’ve hung in here this long. And if not, I totally understand. It’s a LOT of dry verbiage! But if you did, please let me know and I’ll pass it along to Mom. I’m sure she’ll appreciate it, if she’s not too busy petitioning the Olympic Committee for the Beijing games, asking “WHY THE @#$%&! IS GOLF NOT INCLUDED IN THE SCHEDULE!”
Yes, her passport is current and she’s ready to kick some rears in China!
Here’s the link: http://eh.net/encyclopedia/article/moen.panic.1907
Phillip Anderson
Owner/Broker
New Portland Home
(503) 789-8701 Direct
www.NewPortlandHome.com
