At Home with the Ancestors

The more we hear about economic trouble, the more I think about my family's past. One of my ancestral groups owned an entire bend of a small river in middle TN, due to the founder lying about his age (he was 16) to fight in the war of 1812. His descendants were frugal and saved everything- there was a chest in the old house I grew up in for everyone who EVER lived there! My grandmother and great aunt cleaned most of the trunks for their use, so most of the stuff is gone, but I still have a pile of old handwritten receipts (not recipes- receipts for goods purchased) from 1853 to 1935. Family history in the form of spending habits is interesting stuff. A blacksmithing bill totals $1.15 for 10 old horse shoes, 2 of them "found" (a road ran through the property). An interesting bill from 1858 charges 10 cents for a vial of laudanum and 85 cents for a gallon of whiskey. Two doctor visits in 1860 cost $4.50. Obstetrical services (home visit) in 1865 were $10.00. Oh, how times have changed! Those folks grew just about everything they needed. They created their own tiny town with school from wilderness. If they could do all they did with the little they had, we can live, too. No matter what Wall Street decides to do.