I am a history buff. Not just typical history, but odd stories too. The latest historical find blew me away, so enjoy this.

We've never known life without the social security number, right? But there was a time when they were new. November 1936 to be precise.

When the cards that came with the number were new, people had a tough time getting used to having them around, then a light bulb flickered over the head of one wallet manufacturer.

Their thought? We'll show pictures of a social security card in our wallets! People will put them in there, which means we will sell more!

That was the brilliant part. Now for the dumb part. They used a photo of the social security card of company secretary Hilda Whitcher. Yep. Number and all. So, in every single wallet sold, was her very personal information. And thus social security number 078-05-1120 became the most abused in history!

It didn't help that the wallets were sold at the very popular Woolworth's Department Store.  Apparently, people thought the card in the wallet was issued to them even though it was stamped "specimen."  The number was last abused in 1977.  Successfully, I might add.

In case you are wondering, Hilda was given a new number.

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