My dad told me a story about how his dad saved money that speaks volumes about what kind of man he was, but also about how people lived their lives during that time. In 2011 my grandfather William “Jack” Brown died at the age of 91. He was married to my grandmother for 63 years. In 1956 they bought a plot of land and built a house in Lake Hamilton, Florida. They never moved again. It was a modest home: 3 bedrooms and 1 bathroom that sat on a citrus farm. My grandmother outlived my grandpa by about 5 years. It wasn’t until after her death in 2016 that my dad tells me a story in which I immediately responded with, “Those are the kinds of stories you need to be telling your grandkids!”
The Maxwell House Coffee Can
According to my dad, when he was a kid in the 1950s his dad was in the process of acquiring more land surrounding their house in order to establish a sustainable citrus farm. Grandpa’s initial purchase to build his house on was just 0.86 acres, but after his subsequent individual land purchases he owned close to 3.1 acres. The methods he used to accumulate the land is completely countercultural to today’s standards. You see, my grandfather actually saved his money until he had enough to purchase the land. He placed a Maxwell House coffee can (that looked like the one in the picture) in his kitchen. At the end of each day, Grandpa would toss any loose bills or change into the can. When he had enough, he would seal the top of the can and hand the entire thing over to the land owner – purchasing one parcel at a time. Grandpa repeated this process several times until he owned over 3 acres.
Practicing Delayed Gratification
One of the many things we can learn from Grandpa Brown’s money management skills is his effective use of delayed gratification. He didn’t succumb to an overwhelming urge to purchase all the land he wanted at once. He didn’t conform to the comparison lifestyle and note that “Mr. Johnson down the street just bought an entire 5-acre lot, so I better do the same.” Nor did he get a loan and go into debt to purchase the land. He didn’t borrow money from friends or family with the promise of paying it back later. He didn’t barter with the land owner or set up a payment plan with him. My grandfather simply bought what he could afford at the time – an amazing concept that is completely lost on our culture today.
Life in the 1950s
Guess what they didn’t have in the 1950s? Credit cards! Gasp. How did people live and function without them? Back then if you wanted a loan you actually had to get in your car, drive to the bank, and meet with a representative to apply for one. For the most part, the only items people got loans for were large purchases such as a house or car. It was a different time. A time when people lived at or below their means, when concepts such as layaway were mainstream, when people saved money for future purchases, and when cash was king and debt was dumb.
Lessons Learned
The main takeaway I learned from this story is how vastly different our society has changed in such a relatively short amount of time. Marketing, advertising, and now the internet (and social media) have caused us all to fall into the comparison trap. We wait for nothing. We want things that five minutes ago we didn’t know existed. Exercising delayed gratification is a good thing because you will end up appreciating and valuing what you’ve purchased even more. Additionally, taking the time to save your hard-earned money for something will give you the time to contemplate if you truly need it.
For more on my financial journey and thoughts from other unique individuals, check out my book Margin Matters: How to Live on a Simple Budget & Crush Debt Forever.