Posted in Arizona History January 20, 2016 by Monica Spencer

This Is What Life In Arizona Looked Like In 1930s And 1940s Arizona. WOW!

I think for a lot of young people, it can be difficult to imagine what life looked liked 20 years ago. It was the time period when the Internet was just starting to gain popularity, when CDs and cassette tapes still dominated music sales and when DOS was still a popular computer operating system. I’ve worked with younger kids and sometimes it blows their minds thinking that if you needed to complete a research paper, you still had to use the card catalog and encyclopedias back in the mid-90s instead of typing a few words into Google.

But any time period beyond that? It might as well have been the Middle Ages. So, if there are any kids out there (or even adults) who are curious what life looked like years before you were ever born, check out these photos!

1. A childhood before TV and video games? When kids weren’t in school or helping around the house or on the farm, they played games like jacks.

2. Or you read, just like these kids reading the local newspaper.

3. Or you got to play sports in the community, like these kids playing baseball during an annual recreation day.

4. If you were a little older, community dances were something to look forward to on the weekends because it was one of your few chances to socialize.

5. Not everyone owned or had access to cars back then, so if you wanted to get somewhere you had to walk or get a ride on the back of a mule, like these kids.

6. Sometimes it also meant riding your bicycle everywhere.

7. Your average vehicle also looked a little different. Chances are it probably would have looked like this.

8. By the way, household chores were far less automated back then. Doing laundry with an electric washer in 1940 still meant having to get your hands wet.

9. Here’s an example of a similar washing machine in use. You also had to be careful not to squish your fingers in the wringer!

10. Or, if you didn’t have one of the electric versions, washing laundry had to be done by hand. Suddenly, tossing clothes into the washing machine then dryer seems not so bad.

11. Having an electric refrigerator was a big deal and new enough that this salesman showed some consumers how it operates.

12. Finding a live band playing on the street or outside of a store was a treat, especially midday!

13. If you lived away from the city, your mail often came and went like this, even in 1940!

14. You still rode the bus to school but the busses and clothes looked a little different.

15. Classrooms looked a little different as well: just desks, a chalkboard, and some storage. No TVs, whiteboards, smartboards, computers, or other things you can find in classrooms today.

16. Life wasn’t always peachy, especially if your family was poor. Depending on what your family did for work, you might have lived in homes like these.

17. Farming was more common among families than it is today so, as a kid, you were expected to help out with planting, tending, and harvesting.

18. Depending on where in Arizona you lived, you probably also would see migrant families traveling towards California for work.

19. You learned vocational work at a younger age as well because not everyone graduated from high school in those days. Even fewer people went to college and graduated.

20. Just like this kid, who looks no older than 18, already working full-time in a railway yard in Winslow.

21. Office jobs still involved a lot of sitting but in front of gadgets like these instead of computers.

How do you think you, as your current self, would have fared in life all those years ago? Is there anything you’re thankful to have now that people didn’t have then? Share your thoughts in the comments section here!

OnlyInYourState may earn compensation through affiliate links in this article.