Empty Mansions (68 page)
Authors: Bill Dedman
What $1,000 Then Would Be Worth Now
A sum of $1,000 in 1840 had the same buying power as about $23,200 in 2013, according to the tables used by most economists.
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To convert a dollar figure in 1840 to today’s dollars in rough terms, multiply the older value by 23.2.
1840: $1,000 = $23,200 in 2013 (multiply by 23.2 for today’s value)
1850: $1,000 = $27,800 in 2013 (multiply by 27.8)
1860: $1,000 = $25,700 in 2013 (multiply by 25.7)
1870: $1,000 = $18,300 in 2013 (multiply by 18.3)
1880: $1,000 = $23,900 in 2013 (multiply by 23.9)
1890: $1,000 = $25,700 in 2013 (multiply by 25.7)
1900: $1,000 = $27,800 in 2013 (multiply by 27.8)
1910: $1,000 = $24,800 in 2013 (multiply by 24.8)
1920: $1,000 = $11,700 in 2013 (multiply by 11.7)
1930: $1,000 = $14,000 in 2013 (multiply by 14.0)
1940: $1,000 = $16,700 in 2013 (multiply by 16.7)
1950: $1,000 = $9,700 in 2013 (multiply by 9.7)
1960: $1,000 = $7,900 in 2013 (multiply by 7.9)
1970: $1,000 = $6,000 in 2013 (multiply by 6.0)
1980: $1,000 = $2,800 in 2013 (multiply by 2.8)
1990: $1,000 = $1,800 in 2013 (multiply by 1.8)
2000: $1,000 = $1,400 in 2013 (multiply by 1.4)
What $1,000 Now Was Worth Then
A sum of $1,000 in 2013 had the same buying power as about $43 in 1840. To convert between those years, divide the newer value by 23.2.
1840: $43 = $1,000 in 2013 (divide the newer value by 23.2)
1850: $36 = $1,000 in 2013 (divide by 27.8)
1860: $39 = $1,000 in 2013 (divide by 25.7)
1870: $55 = $1,000 in 2013 (divide by 18.3)
1880: $42 = $1,000 in 2013 (divide by 23.9)
1890: $39 = $1,000 in 2013 (divide by 25.7)
1900: $36 = $1,000 in 2013 (divide by 27.8)
1910: $40 = $1,000 in 2013 (divide by 24.8)
1920: $85 = $1,000 in 2013 (divide by 11.7)
1930: $71 = $1,000 in 2013 (divide by 14.0)
1940: $60 = $1,000 in 2013 (divide by 16.7)
1950: $103 = $1,000 in 2013 (divide by 9.7)
1960: $127 = $1,000 in 2013 (divide by 7.9)
1970: $167 = $1,000 in 2013 (divide by 6.0)
1980: $357 = $1,000 in 2013 (divide by 2.8)
1990: $556 = $1,000 in 2013 (divide by 1.8)
2000: $714 = $1,000 in 2013 (divide by 1.4)
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These conversions use the consumer price index from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics for the years beginning 1913 and
Historical Statistics of the United States
(Washington, DC: Government Printing Office, 1975) for earlier years. Some researchers contend that these conversions greatly underweight the true change in the value of the dollar.
B
ILL
D
EDMAN
introduced the public to heiress Huguette Clark and her empty mansions through his compelling series of narratives for NBC, which became the most popular feature in the history of its news website, topping 110 million page views. He received the 1989 Pulitzer Prize in investigative reporting while writing for
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
and has written for
The New York Times, The Washington Post
, and
The Boston Globe
.
• • •
P
AUL
C
LARK
N
EWELL
, J
R
., a cousin of Huguette Clark, has researched the Clark family history for twenty years, sharing many conversations with Huguette about her life and family. He received a rare private tour of Bellosguardo, the mysterious oceanfront Clark estate in Santa Barbara.
• • •
