Inside a training room at the Montgomery, Ala., plant of Rheem Water Heaters are displays of memorabilia from the company's history. One exhibit includes a mannequin of Edwin Ruud, inventor of the water heater, alongside one of his early models from the turn of the 20th century, and an advertisement for that model. The ad shows the price as $100, or $115 west of the Rockies and in Canada.
Amazing, isn't it, that with a little shopping around this is about what some consumers might pay for a basic 30-gal. or even 40-gal. water heater today! With most products, we chuckle seeing the ridiculously low prices they used to sell for in today's dollars. But Ruud's prices from a century ago wouldn't seem out of place in some Home Depot stores in 2003.