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Myriam Adelheid Erzherzogin von Österreich

b. 1959

Born
21 Nov 1959, Mexico City
Country of birth
Mexico

Living person. The family sees only the name, dates and photo; everything else stays private unless they choose to share it.

facts
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sources
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Facts and their sources

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A life in time

  1. Born · Mexico City

    Birth, Mexico City

What was it like?

The world around Mexico City, 1959: who ruled, who else was alive, how people lived. This is general history, not a record about the family, and every item shows where it comes from.

Myriam was born the same year as Stephen Harper, "Weird Al" Yankovic, and Kevin Spacey.

Born the same year

  • Stephen Harper

    22nd prime minister of Canada from 2006 to 2015

  • "Weird Al" Yankovic

    American comedy musician (born 1959)

  • Kevin Spacey

    American actor

  • John McEnroe

    American former tennis player (born 1959)

  • Evo Morales

    president of Bolivia from 2006 to 2019

  • Mike Pence

    Vice President of the United States from 2017 to 2021

Fashion

Traditional Mixtec clothing and customs

Mixtec women wore a heavy cotton skirt called a pozahuanco or che'e, woven on a backstrap loom, which could weigh up to 700 grams. Some women in the region practiced traditional bare-chestedness, a custom referred to locally as chirunda.

1950s fashion trends for men and women

In the 1950s, stylish women wore felt skirts with appliqués and sweaters draped over their shoulders. Men's fashion included denim jeans, flashy jackets, and large pompadour hairstyles.

Music

Broadcasting Brought Music Into Mexican Homes

Radio and television significantly influenced home life, with producers standardizing song lengths to under three minutes to fit between commercials. This technology brought romantic music into domestic spaces, often serving as emotional accompaniment for housewives.

Around 1952–1958

Festivals Featured Processional Music and Dance

Religious festivals, such as the Festival of Guadalupe in Saltillo, featured processions involving trumpets, flutes, and drums, alongside traditional dances performed by crowds. Among indigenous groups, specific ceremonial music accompanied dances like the Peyote or Squash dances.

Getting around

Muleteering wages and travel times in 1950s

In the 1950s, a muleteer transporting piloncillo was paid 5 centavos per kilo for his services. For a journey between San Pedro Chapulhuacán and the distant ranchería of Tepehuacán, he would depart at 5 a.m. and return late at night on the following day.

Around 1950–1956

Mule travel to Huautla before 1956

Before 1956, reaching Huautla de Jiménez required traveling 50 kilometers on mule-back over rugged trails, a journey that took a full day after arriving in Teotitlán de Flores Magón.

Daily life

Streets as playgrounds due to small homes

Because many urban homes were small and lacked private patios, children frequently used the street as their primary space for playing and socializing with friends. Negotiations with local school principals were sometimes necessary to gain access to school courtyards for playing soccer.

Traditional cooking methods persisted despite new technology

While gas stoves and electric mills became available between 1950 and 1960, many families continued using traditional charcoal or firewood for cooking daily meals. Some housewives even resisted buying store-bought tortillas, preferring to hand-press them despite the hour-long effort.

Food

Fresh ingredients and school breakfasts

Children in the 1950s and 1960s often drank fresh cow's milk from nearby stables and ate eggs from hens raised at home. Their school breakfasts from the INPI included a small bottle of milk, a palanqueta, and a chocolate bar with nuts.

Adoption of international foods and drinks

During this period, middle-class and wealthy urban diets began incorporating international foods like hamburgers, hot dogs, and doughnuts, while Coca-Cola became a popular alternative to traditional aguas frescas.

Prices and wages
Around 1961–1961

Wages and rent in 1961

In 1961, full-time maids in Guadalajara earned between 7 and 12 pesos per month, while rent for a tiny room could cost 60 pesos monthly.

Living costs in the 1950s

During the 1950s, the daily minimum wage was 6 pesos, while basic goods like a liter of milk cost 1.20 pesos and a kilogram of meat cost 3 pesos.

Work

Legal working hours and restrictions

The legal maximum workday was eight hours for day labor and seven hours for night work, with a strict ban on night work for women and children. Children under legal working age were prohibited from working more than six hours per day.

Steelworker wages and accident compensation

In the steel industry, workers could earn between 2 and 9 pesos per day. Accidents were common, and one worker received an indemnity for losing a finger that allowed him to buy a small house at the time.

News and letters

Communication speeds for letters and telegrams

Mail service was the primary communication method, often taking weeks for a letter to travel and receive a response. For urgent matters, telegrams were used, though they typically took two to three days to arrive.

Mail lists posted at local shops

In small towns, letters were often addressed to "domicilio conocido" (known address) because houses lacked street numbers. Mail was collected at local shops, where a handwritten "Lista del Correo" (Mail List) was posted on the facade for residents to check for their names.

During their lifetime

  1. 1968

    Tlatelolco Massacre occurs in 1968

    On October 2, 1968, the Mexican army killed several hundred student protesters at the Plaza de las Tres Culturas in the Tlatelolco Massacre.

  2. 1969

    Metro Line 1 opens in 1969

    In 1969, Mexico City inaugurated Line 1 of the Metro, the city's first rapid transit system.

  3. 1982

    Economic crisis and peso devaluation in 1982

    Following a severe economic crisis and high inflation, the Mexican government was forced to repeatedly devalue the peso in 1982.

  4. 1985

    1985 Mexico City earthquake kills thousands

    A devastating earthquake struck Mexico City on September 19, 1985, killing an estimated 100,000 people.

  5. 1994

    NAFTA takes effect in 1994

    The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) went into effect in 1994, aiming to integrate the economies of Mexico, the U.S., and Canada.

Family

Parents

Spouses

Ancestors and children

Open the full tree

Four generations back to the right, the children to the left. The number beside a child counts the generations of descendants known after them.