To the editor:
I enjoyed the Looking Back section in your Jan. 29th paper, especially the info on the $36.80 1939 round-trip airfare from Caribou to Boston. I was curious how that price stacked up to PenAir’s current Presque Isle to Boston fare, so I “did the math.”
If you plan ahead and travel on the cheapest days, PenAir’s non-cancelable round trip fare is $195, all taxes included. Add $50 for the baggage that was most likely free back in ’39, giving a $245 total for comparison.
Using the online Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI inflation calculator, $36.80 in 1939 equated to $616.75 in 2013, so PenAir’s $245 fare represents a $371.75 savings off the 1939 fare equivalent. In 1939 terms, $245 2013 dollars were worth only $14.62, for a savings of $22.18. Our current round trip Boston airfare is 60 percent cheaper than in 1939!
My curiosity piqued, I checked auto prices. The first link I clicked showed me the then popular 1939 Chevrolet Master DeLuxe 4-door sedan, whose top model sold for $766. In 2013 dollars that’s $12,837.77. No savings there: looks like about 50 percent the other way. I’d love to drive a new Impala off a dealer’s lot at that price!
I also found a Dept. of Energy website that quoted the 1939 national average gasoline price at 19 cents per gallon. In 2013 dollars that is $3.18. The national average price of regular gas for the week of Christmas was $3.20 (though this price has nothing to do with Aroostook County, as we know), so, believe it or not, the U.S. pays about the same for gas now as back then.
Mark Reschke
Caribou
