Originally Posted by
miriam
AVERAGE COST (cash paid) FOR MACHINE
Year Cost
1906 - 1912 $36.80 to 41.60
1913 - 1917 $39.60 to 44.40
1918 - 1920 $44.40 to 55.60
1921 - 1928 $60.80 to 67.20
1928 - 1935 $72.25 to 85.00
1935 - 1946 $84.00 to 115.00
When you figure folks weren't making more than a couple dollars a week those days - those machines were GOLD!!!
Then when you look at how well they were made and hold up they ARE gold - GOLDEN YEARS OF AMERICA at that!
Then today, when you look at a new sewing machine costing less than one day's or one week's work - no wonder they are disposable and if you look at how they are made it is no wonder they have so little value.
Calculating for inflation, $35 in 1910 is about $800 in 2010. If you spent $100 in 1945, that would be about $1200 in 2010. Frankly, I'd balk at having to spend that much today on a sewing machine. Of course, I don't make clothing and household goods for my entire family either, and I'm not dependent upon my sewing machine to supplement my income.
I think it would be really interesting from a historical standpoint to see how domestic uses of sewing machines, their place of "honor" in the home, and their costs have changed over the years.
I'm kinda nerdy like that!