In a similar fashion, going further back in time, did people living in the 1810's, 1820's, and 1830's refer to the 1770's, 1780's, and 1790's as the seventies, eighties, and nineties? Or maybe if they were referring to the 1720's, would they say the twenties?
I bring up this question because I wonder if people in 2100 would refer to our 21st decades as the twenties, thirties, fourties and fifties because we have referred to 20th century decades as such.
I know this question is wordy and probably naive (I assume people in past centuries haven't referred to past decades like us with the twentieth century), but my curiosity itches.
Yes, the 1890's were referred to as the "Gay 90's" but not for the reasons you might surmise.
EDIT: See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gay_Nineties
Although to be fair, the term was applied retroactively.