Stuff in my Dad's wallet

[JohnnyRingo]

He never threw anything away.

This is the back of an American Legion membership card from the '40s:


Now look closely at the deductions on this paycheck from just after The War:


Hahaha..."old age tax"?

I know that $90 per week doesn't sound like much, but that was a lot of money back then.... Some Republicans think it still is

on edit...He had 5 or 6 movie passes to see "Here's Your Infantry".
I'd say it must have been a popular flick, but he still had them unused.

I think they handed them out at every stop a GI made:

[MNDemNY]

1. I love "old age tax"

[Yupster]

35. We'd all love it a lot more if it was just

1 % like it was on that stub. Also no medicare tax either.

[AX10]

2. 18% tax for a working class person is not that bad.

At least he could afford to live. These days, that is very hard for many working class people.

[Recursion]

3. Check your columns; that's 90 cents a week

Which was still a lot of money in those days...

[Jed Dilligan]

7. I think he's referring to the $89.72 in the wages column

[TroglodyteScholar]

8. He meant ~$90 ($89) gross income, if you look at the total of what he was paid for that week. n/t

[Dora]

4. That's not $90 per week in "old age tax."

That's $.90 per week -- ninety cents.

[Dervill Crow]

6. I think the OP was rounding up the $89.72 to $90. eom

[evlbstrd]

10. I believe the OP was referrring to the gross income column.

Not the old age tax.

[JohnnyRingo]

16. Correct, Thank You

That's a favorite line I use when I tell friends I made $6 an hour when I started with GM 35 years ago.

After they point out "that was a lot of money back then", I remind them of the big deal among Repubs for raising the minimum wage above that level....in 2007

[Bluebear]

5. .

corrected

[Jed Dilligan]

9. What a creepy-looking cartoon

Their faces look like they are taking him to a donkey-sex show or something equally perverted.

[hootinholler]

15. Ever been in an American Legion?

:evilgrin:

-Hoot

[TomInTib]

19. No kidding.

When I came home, they used to parade me around to Legion Halls like a pet monkey (before my old habit overwhelmed me).

Those WWII vets were younger than I am now.

And most of them thought that we could surely whip them Commies if Washington would just let us take it to them.

In my opinion, that cartoon fit those guys to a T.

[hootinholler]

26. I'm kinda glad I don't qualify for the Legion or the VFW

I am a life member of AMVETS but not very active.

My step-dad used to take me to the Legion growing up.

-Hoot

[JVS]

18. You're just sore that they didn't invite you

[orpupilofnature57]

11. $3.34 A week for insurance

[AnneD]

12. Group Insurance was.....

$3.34. What a bargain!


Edited to add-head bump while reaching for the same shiny penny.

[Union Yes]

13. My packrat-itis is now justified!

[SeattleGirl]

14. My grandfather never threw anything away either.

Shortly before he died, my mom and I went to his house to get rid of most of it, and it was fascinating to see the stuff he had, like the hospital bill from when my mom was born. It was a whopping $10!

[JohnnyRingo]

21. My Dad still had his 1st electric bill

...and his last one.

Though he kept every paycheck he ever received, in his defence his paychecks later told him to "keep this stub permanently"...so he did

[SeattleGirl]

32. What I can't get over is how small the taxes were then.

I don't mind paying taxes; I just mind the way they are so often wasted, especially on this FUBAR of a war.

[BrotherBuzz]

17. Ralph Kramden only made 62 dollars a week

[Dukkha]

20. perhaps a premise for a new website?

stuffinmydadswallet.com

[WritersBlock]

22. What a treasure-trove!

Wow - You're really lucky to have all that. You have a very unique opportunity to gain an insight into your father's daily life; that is such a priceless gift, and very much worth preserving. I agree with the poster above - that would make a perfect website idea, too.

[JohnnyRingo]

23. This was in just one of many old wallets

I guess when they started giving him back problems, he just bought a new one.
Hahaha

[samplegirl]

24. Ah.....Stacey was a good man.

I miss him. He always told me...he's got a good son.

[JohnnyRingo]

31. You knew him well....Bless your compassion

He loved you Samp, I know he did

[sandnsea]

25. And no ss number

I've got some old pay stubs of my dad's, from the 50's I think. They had a taxpayer ID number, separate from his social security number. We were never supposed to be tracked through our ss number, it was a promise made when it was passed. Dumbest thing we ever did was turning ourselves into numbers.

[Crabby Appleton]

28. I remember when SS cards stated right on them "Not to be used

for identification"

[JohnnyRingo]

33. That's why we had draft cards

...To get 3.2% beer
When we turned 21, we could buy "high power", Like Rolling Rock.
That was only available in 7% (ka-boom)

I'd always ask for RR, just in case the bartender thought I was of age.
If not, I had to settle for Bud with a red cap. ...near beer

Ahhhh...Adolesence in NE Ohio

[JohnnyRingo]

30. It was there, I blurred it out

As if someome's going to ruin his credit....Post-Mortum

[mtnester]

27. I know exactly where the Lyric theater used to be in Lancaster

my grandpa talks about it all the time (I can drive to its original location within 12 minutes)

My grandpa has stuff like that in his wallet too..he was a SeaBee. He won't talk much abut it even today.

Was he from the Fairfield County area?

[JohnnyRingo]

29. Warren, Ohio

Trumbull County
I don't knowe why he was in Lancaster, probably a little known Army base there.

At the time

[mtnester]

36. Lockboune..I betcha that was the one

before they changed it to Rickenbacker

Or perhaps the guard base in Newark? (Licking County)

It could also be another entirely different matter...oh the secrets I have recently learned. :) Not that this pertains to your family, but these guys were GOOD at keeping their stuff locked away.

[KoKo]

34. Thanks for sharing those. Amazing to see....n/t

[mainegreen]

37. He earned about $49100/yr adjusted w/40439/yr after taxes adjusted

Not bad. Esp. after taxes!

And using non-govt fiddled inflation statistics he probably earned more like $60000/yr.

[Javaman]

38. Dang, he wallet must have been a yard thick! nt