18-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today:
Wednesday, January 21, 1914: Can’t give much of an account of myself for today.
Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:
Winter gets long. It’s time to start thinking about a vacation. During the 3+ years that I’ve been posting the diary entries, Grandma has never traveled more than 15 miles or so from her home. Did Grandma ever dream of visiting a city? . . . Maybe New York City?
Since Grandma didn’t write much a hundred years ago today, I’ll share a fun advertisement for the Biltmore Hotel in New York City that was on the back cover of the April, 1914 issue of National Food Magazine.
I’ll take one of those $2.50 a night rooms. . . . well, now that I’m thinking about it, I’d be willing to pay a little extra for a room with a bath. 🙂
A Hundred Years Ago 
When I saw the title of your post, I immediately thought it would be featuring the Biltmore in Asheville, NC. I never knew there was a hotel by that name in NY.
To my knowledge, my mother never traveled out of our state but twice: once to visit her brother in Pennsylvania and once to the Outer Banks with my sister. The latter was an overnight visit, and I’m thinking it would have been her only time in a hotel.
It’s amazing how little people traveled only 50 or 60 years ago.
I always love your Grandma’s manner of speaking! There is also a Biltmore Hotel (and Resort) in Phoenix, Arizona. It is one of the most well known and beautiful hotels and resorts in the Southwest.
Interesting. . . I didn’t realize that there are Biltmores in several locations until I read your comment and the others.
Wow … how the money has changed!
My mother was born the year this diary started 1913. She made one trip abroad [thanks to me], from Sweden to Florida 1978! Her first time on an aircraft too…
Wow, what a fun, exciting trip it must have been for her!
There is a Biltmore in Phoenix too…. I could use some sunshine about now. Wonder when Helena will ever take a real vacation.
I could use some sunshine (and warm weather), too. 🙂
Yes. A room with a bath! 50 of them didn’t have baths….
Hard to imagine that a luxury hotel (or any hotel for that matter) won’t have had a bath. 🙂
back then, many folks didn’t even take as many as 1 bath per day. Sponge bathing maybe…
This post brought back memories. I have never seen the Biltmore in New York City but there is one in Oklahoma City OK and that is the one I remember. Wow, wouldn’t it be nice if we could get rooms in a hotel at those prices now days. Hugs
And, the rooms were in a really fancy hotel. . .What a deal!
I love the way you supplement your grandma’s journals. Such a nice historical reminder of the way things were.
Thanks! I’m glad that you enjoyed this post.
You probably can’t get a room with outside air anymore. That must have been a really special place–an entire city block.
It sounds like a really fancy place in it’s day. Somehow I don’t think that outside air would be a selling point today.
No, not any more. We have a similar, large hotel at the beach, The Cavalier, that was fancy in its heyday. It sits atop a hill, surrounded by the country club greens. Sadly, the new owner plans to raze it and develop the land. The company I worked for always held a Christmas party there. I think it had a marble dance floor–beautiful!
Good job of covering for Grandma’s slow days. I am always amazed about what you come up with.
Thanks! I enjoy sharing the miscellaneous things which I happen upon that I find interesting.