Your problem may not have been the battery at all, but corroded connections somewhere between the battery and the starter.
Disconnect the negative battery terminal (always) first, then the positive.
Inspect the cables at the battery clamps and make sure they are not corroded away under the insulation by flexing them close to the clamps. If they bend easily, you need new cables.
If those appear to be OK, follow the positive (red) cable down to the starter or solenoid terminal, remove and clean this.
Follow the negative (black) cable to its other end (could be chassis or engine block), remove and clean this too.
If the starter still isn't responsive, the starter (or solenoid if separate) may have failed.
Whether external or internal, the solenoid has to handle 100-150 amperes which caused the heavy copper contacts to eventually arc themselves to death, often by becoming intermittent at first, then not contacting enough to supply current to the starter.
If the starter has a hump on its side, this is the solenoid and is replaced with the starter.
Some vehicles use an external solenoid (this is just a very beefy relay) and you may have found it while cleaning connectors.
When RE-connecting the battery, always connect the negative terminal last.
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Should have also mentioned that with ~18 years of service on the ignition switch, it can also be at fault.
Turning the key to the start position should result in a solid 'click' from the solenoid if the ignition switch is still OK.
Everyone should buy a cheap (<$20 US) digital multimeter before the Chinese stop taking dollars. This would allow you to actually troubleshoot your problem instead of doing all that was described earlier.
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Should go ahead and check the charging system while we're at it! With a volt meter, check voltage on battery post's with engine off, and no electrical items on. Then start engine, and check battery voltage again. This voltage reading should be 1 to 1.5 volts higher than the first. If not, I'd be eyeballin' the alternator real good. At 18 years, it's ****** is bound to be hanging out!!
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