What changes a century brings!

Back at the closing of 1920, the town of Cranston had a population of less than 30,000. The majority of businessmen in town were employed as store owners, milk dealers, barbers, construction workers, clergymen, real estate agents and lawyers. Women in business numbered high as dressmakers, teachers and nurses. There was one teacher of lip-reading, 26-year-old Marion Allen Durfee, and one midwife, Nardelli Giacomina.

One hundred years ago, there were more grocery markets in Cranston than any other type of business. There were also harness-makers, tinsmiths, barrel dealers, basket manufacturers and blacksmiths plying trades that have been lost to time.

Entertainment back then was in the form of film and music. The Auburn Theatre, which advertised “high-class motion pictures,” opened its doors each night at 8 o’clock and on Saturdays from 2 to 4:30 in the afternoon. Admission cost 10 cents per person. Musical presentations and minstrel shows were often put on by various societies along with luncheons and “chicken shortcake” dinners.

Local clubs at the time included the Antlers Club, founded in 1914 for social and literary purposes, and the Edgewood Casino Club, which had been founded during the previous century.

While the number of restaurants in Cranston back in 1920 could be counted on one hand, gentlemen had the option of spending time at Peter Muccino’s Pool Room. Overnight accommodations could be found at Hermann’s Hotel or Silver Lake Hotel.

Town workers included John Hamilton, who filled the position of overseer of the poor. William Flanders was the superintendent of street signs. George Hill was the measurer of wood, while Cassius Wilbur was the measurer of slaughtered cattle. Clarence Horton was the auctioneer, and Frederick Miller served as the weigher of cotton. Thirteen paid police officers kept the town safe, along with 10 constables.

For those needing “Utopian chocolates, camera supplies and sick room necessities,” Eden Drug Company was the place to go in Cranston during the days when the ’20s were just beginning to roar. Here, one might be able to purchase a bottle of “Bell-ans” tablets for 25 cents, a sure-cure for flatulence and other conditions caused by overeating; or infant drops, which boldly assured parents that the contents included neither opium nor morphine.

A major change in laws had just given American women the right to vote. Newly-elected president Warren Harding would be leading the country under the slogan “Return to Normalcy,” following the First World War. And families were being encouraged to get with the times by making “the new year bright with electric light!” Local electric companies promised easy payment plans for those desiring to have their homes electrically wired.

If you really think about it, 100 years is not a long time. Yet in that time, the country has not only become electrified but has put people within reach of most things through the single touch of a button. Within this past century, women have not only stepped up to freely vote, but to be elected to major political positions.

We no longer have slots to fill for measurers of cotton or slaughtered cattle, and we’re not likely to come across blacksmith shops or tinsmiths. A search through a modern directory will display dozens of midwives, services for the deaf and all manner of hotels and restaurants.

Yes, a lot has certainly transformed in a single century.

Kelly Sullivan is a Rhode Island columnist, lecturer and author.