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The Toddler Who Burned Their Family’s Life Savings In 1890
A Massachusetts’ family saw nearly all of the money they had saved for years go up in smoke after the actions of their curious young daughter
Most of us, even those who are wealthy, guard our money closely. Working hard and knowing that a steady influx of cash is needed to live life keeps us all going on our journey to accumulate funds. Losing even a little bit of what we have been able to stockpile is dreadfully painful. Therefore, imagine the anguish of one family in 1890 who found out that their toddler child burned up the equivalent of around nine months worth of wages in the family furnace.
In 1890, the average laborer made around $0.137 per hour. Extrapolated over a 12 month period, someone making that kind of wage might pull in between $400-$500 if they worked regular hours throughout the year.
Accounting for above, the horrible discovery made by Antone Fratus of Provincetown, Massachusetts, as reported in the January 18, 1890 issue of the Daily Gazette, must have been excruciating.
Fratus, a young man of about 24, worked for the Provincetown whaling fleet. He had taken to squirreling away money in a safe place at home. Eschewing banks, he instead used his pillow to…
