This page added 08-13-05

On Jan. 22, 1874, the Beatrice Express Newspaper published a brief article on the cost of living in Beatrice, Nebraska, for the benefit of those seeking new homes in the West.  The Express undoubtedly hoped to encourage new settlement in the area with a listing of the local abundance and cheapness of the necessities of life.

RENTS = Small houses with from three to four rooms can be rented at, from $8 to $10 per month.  Those having five to seven rooms in desirable locations and in good repair, from $15 to $20 per month.

FUEL = Good hard wood, sawed and split for the stove, $5 to $6 per cord; bituminous coal, $6 to $7 per ton.

GROCERIES = Sugar, 7 to 9 pounds for $1; coffee - Rio, 33 cts per pound, Java, 40 cts; teas, 75 cts to $130 per pound; soap, 3 bars for 25 cts; vinegar, 30 to 40 cts per gallon; lard, 8 cts per pound; crackers, 8 1/2 to 12 1/2 cts; sausage, 10 to 12 1/2 cts; shoulder, 10 cts; mutton, 8 to 10 cts; veal, 8 to 15 cts; buffalo steak, l0 cts per pound; venison, 10 cts per pound.

VEGETABLES = Potatoes, per bushel $1.25; onions, $1.25 per bushel; beans, 6 to 8 cts per pound.  Vegetables being very scarce this year on account of their partial failure the past summer, it should be remarked that they are much higher than usual, and hence our figures should be no criterion for ordinary times.

FRUITS = Apples, per bushel $1.50 to $2.00; dried apples, per pound 12 1/2 cts; dried peaches, 12 1/2 to 15 cts per pound; canned peaches, 2 pound cans, $3.00 per dozen; other canned fruits, $2.50 to $3.00 per dozen.

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