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14

Although it was rough going to make ends meet in 1933, one thing in our favor was the depressed price structure on about everything as illustrated by the following from TIME—LIFE BOOKS "This Fabulous Century" Volume IV: 

Depression Shopping List
1932-1934

Pontiac coupe                $585.00
Packard                      2150.00
Ford (1929)                    57.50
Wool dress                      1.95
Silk stockings                   .69
Men's wool suit                10.50
Men's shoes                     3.85
Silk necktie                     .55
Wool blanket                    1.00
Electric iron                   2.00
Gas stove                      23.95
Bridge table                    1.00
Mahogany coffee table          10.75
Dental filling                  1.00
Cigarettes                       .15
Gasoline (per gallon)            .18
Sled                            1.45
Catcher's mitt                  1.19
BB air rifle                     .79
Sirloin steak (per pound)        .29
Milk (per quart)                 .10
Bread (20 oz. loaf)              .05
Potatoes (per lb.)               .02
Modern house, 6 rooms,
  2-car garage, Detroit      2800.00
Chicago to San Francisco
  round trip, 16 days in
  San Francisco (rail)        80.50


1933 saw the creation of the many alphabet operations such as the NRA (National Recovery Administration), CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps), PWA (Public Works Administration), and so on. We benefited directly from the PWA program, which was responsible for the financing of the extensive Pennsylvania Railroad electrification for which both GE and Westinghouse supplied both locomotives and equipment. Unfortunately, I was not assigned to this in TED but nevertheless it helped to keep the operation going and paid a lot of salaries and undoubtedly kept many on the payroll who otherwise would have been laid off. Another development during the beginning of Roosevelt's New Deal was the ending of Prohibition, which had quite an effect on our way of life in off hours at 1east but did not occur in time to do much in 1933, not ending until December because it took a Constitutional Amendment which took time.