Peachtree A century’s worth of history is wrapped up in one little lady. Talking with Ellie Deeb was like opening up a history book.
“Number nine is my lucky number,” Deeb said when asked about her birth date. She was born on Oct. 9, 1919, in New York, and has seen the world change so much in her lifetime.
When she was born, there were no cellphones nor personal computers. The 102-year-old resident of Murphy Rehab & Nursing was around long before Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
In the first decade of her life were the inventions of the pop-up toaster, Band-Aids, Penicillin, 3D movie spectacles, mechanical televisions and the first robot. Bubble gum, the yo-yo, electric shaver and traffic signal were all invented when she was just a child. She and her brother lived in the country and liked to go roller-skating.
Deeb recalled getting the mumps once as a kid and impetigo in grade school after laying on a gym mat that a boy had been laying on before her. She also remembers running from the school to the railroad station to witness the Hindenburg flying over.
“When I was 17 or 18 years old, I worked for the Remington brand, and they had just invented the typewriter,” Deeb said.
She has lived through the Great Depression and World War ll. Of the hard times during the Depression,
she said, “It wasn’t good at all. There was not a lot of food.”
Deeb told of having a vehicle that had to be cranked to get it started. She enjoyed country and dance music when she was younger and really enjoyed dancing.
She was married in 1940 and had two children; her son lives in Hayesville. She remained married for 38 years until her husband passed away.
At age 49, she was working with Peoples Federal Savings & Loan in West Palm Beach, Fla. Her employer suggested one day that she take some banking courses, and she did.
As a result, she eventually became the branch manager in her late 50s.
She moved to Murphy about 10 years ago. When asked who she admires, she said, “Ronald Reagan, but today Donald Trump.
“I’ve never minded getting older until I almost died a couple of times. I had a Florida doctor tell me once that it was due to old age. When I was 70 years old, my son found me lying on the floor one day and took me to see a doctor who used to be an Army medic. He sent me for an MRI, and it was a tumor behind my right ear – that’s why I can’t hear good – and water on the brain. If he hadn’t done that, I would have died.
“I never minded getting older. I’ve had a good life, and bringing up two really good children was a big accomplishment for me.”
As for advice to others, she thought for a minute and said, “Where there’s