Inspired by THIS POST on The In-Depth Genealogist, my research inspiration today revolves around my ancestors' real estate values. Using the 1870 US Federal Census, I decided to choose two households from my family tree - one being my best-guess estimate as "richest relative in 1870" and "poorest relative in 1870". I don't mean this in any disrespectful sort of way...I'm just curious about getting a feel for the socio-economic standing of my ancestors in relation to their neighbors and community. In this particular census, the value of the family's real estate is listed in $ dollars as well as the total estimated value of their personal property. For comparison in modern-day standards, I ran values for "richest" and "poorest" through an inflation calculator online. A small disclosure here...I selected these two households based on an educated guess. With more time, I can browse through ALL 1870 US Census reports attached t