The year was 1906

DrewsLou · December 4, 2006

THE YEAR 1906

This will boggle your mind, I know it did mine!

The year is 1906.

One hundred years ago.

What a difference a century makes!

Here are some of the U.S. statistics for the Year 1906:

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The average life expectancy in the U.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 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 made $2,500 per year,

a veterinarian $1,500 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 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 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." ( Shocking? )

There were about 230 reported Murders in the ENTIRE U.S.A. !

Now I sent it to you and others all over the United States,

possibly the world, in a matter of just Seconds !!!!!!!!!

PASS THIS ALONG!!!!!

Just Try to imagine.....

what it may be like ....

in another 100 years !!!!!!!

IT STAGGERS THE MIND !!!!!!!!!

Devana · December 5, 2006

That is so cool. I often ask elderly people what they think about all the changes they've seen. The social, economic and technical changes are enormous, but how it has affected the people living through it, I extremely interesting.

bitteroldhag · December 6, 2006

This info is fascinating. In my own lifetime, we have seen the invention of or the heavy use of TV, microwave ovens, everything digital, computers, central air conditioning, indoor bathrooms for nearly everyone, dishwashers, refrigerators with freezers, automatic washing machines and dryers, heartworm pills for dogs, CAT scans, MRIs, various other medical advances, the eradication of polio, the advent of AIDS, space flight, missiles, eradication of smallpox, tonsillitis, and diphtheria, the internet. The invention of fleece clothes, polyester clothes, polyester blend clothes. Well, there are just too many to mention. Growing up, my mother didn't have electricity or an indoor john in her house, nor did they have running Water and sewer systems (they lived on the country). We have two bathrooms for two people. In fact my grandparents didn't have running water or indoor toilets during their lifetimes though they had electricity and propane. When my parents bought them a TV, they thought it was the greatest thing ever. Most people have multiple TVs now and still can't find anything to watch. We didn't get a TV until I was 6 and my brother wouldn't undress in front of the TV because he thought they could see him. I remember TV in black and white. We got a color TV in my teens. This was my fault because color TVs were crappy when they first came out and I told my parents to wait until they got better before getting one. They got a cast off color TV from a friend. My first calculator was about the size of a paperback book and cost $75. My latest calculator, which is powered by light, is the size of half a graham cracker and cost under $20. It's flatly amazing how advanced we became in the 20th century, but as Erich Fromm says, we are still paleolithic people with lots of gadgets. It's how we use these things that counts.