Sailing Lake Michigan on his 102nd birthday

Sol Morris says that he lived in Chicago “for 100 years” before he and his wife Rosalie moved to the Milwaukee area two years ago to be closer to their family members.

“I remember Chicago when we had wooden sidewalks and unpaved roads. I remember when the streetcars were pulled by horses,” he said.

Sol was born in Chicago on Sept. 24, 1902. He celebrated his 102 birthday at his home with his wife, 92, and other friends and family last week.

Sol, who first began working with stocks and securities back in 1920, was a member of the Chicago board of trade and worked on the Chicago Stock Exchange until 1942, when he went into business with his younger brother, Sydney.

The two formed Sydney Morris and Associates, which built shopping centers and rental properties in the Milwaukee area beginning in the late 1940’s.

“We laid a lot of bricks and mortar in those days,” Sol said.

The brothers worked together until Sydney’s death in 1982. Sol eventually sold the business in 1992.

Sol and Rosalie have been married 52 years and have two children and three grandchildren. Their son, John Morris, lives in Brown Deer and their daughter, Mary Morris O’Connor, lives in Brooklyn, New York. Sol gets excited when he talks about them and their accomplishments.

When his daughter Mary, who is a professor of creative writing at Sarah Lawrence University, asked him what he wanted to do this year for his birthday, Sol replied, “I think I’d like to take that ferry.” He was referring to the Milwaukee Lake Express high-speed ferry.

Sol said that Mary “arranged for the company to make us her guests” and sent out a “beautiful announcement” as an invitation for the trip.

“It was a beautiful and fabulous ride,” Sol said.

“We were up and back in six hours. When I was younger, I would take a boat across to Michigan that would take all night.”

When asked what the secret is to living such a long and healthy life, Sol’s response is simple.

“My secret was written up in the Journal yesterday,” he said, in reference to an article published in the paper last week about the effects of diet on longevity.

“One drink of liquor a day— but only one, because you don’t want to get drunk. Also, I eat my vegetables.”