Continuing with items I came across during the recent sorting and decluttering of family ephemera, here's a letter that my great-grandfather, Howard Horsey "Ted" Adams (1892-1985), received in August 1968 to confirm a post-retirement consultant position with The Welsbach Corporation of Philadelphia. I hope to write more about Welsbach and my great-grandfather's work there at some point (add it to the list, right?). For now, suffice to say that he was an electrical engineer and in the late 1960s Welsbach was still involved with electrical construction and infrastructure contracts.
The contract was for $6,000 and was set to begin on October 1, 1968, a few weeks after Howard's 76th birthday. It included having an office at his disposal and required that he be available to the chairman of the board for consultation on company matters. Today's equivalent of $6,000 is about $56,500, so this was a pretty lucrative gig atop my great-grandfather's retirement plan and other savings. Having specialized expertise was valued and paid well! Somehow I don't foresee anyone retaining me as a consultant for journalism or copyediting matters if and when I reach age 76.