20 Things Parents Allowed in the 1950s That Would Be Banned Today

Life for kids in the 1950s was marked by freedoms and responsibilities that might shock parents today. For instance, it was common for kids to explore their neighborhoods, participate in household chores, and go out on their own with minimal adult supervision. These were just some of the daily habits that were shaped by the faith that society had in itself and in its kids, as well as in the idea that growing up with some level of independence was beneficial for character development. However, as society learned more about safety, technology improved, and society became more socially conscious, some of these habits were found to have hidden dangers in areas such as transportation, playtime, work, and at home.

1. Letting Children Ride in Cars Without Seatbelts

In the early 1950s, seatbelts were scarce in family automobiles, and most parents did not think twice about it. Kids climbed into the back seat of large sedans, station wagons, and pickups without restraint. They might sit comfortably on a bench seat, or they might even lie down for long trips on the road. They might even stand up between the front seats, eager to catch a glimpse of the road through the windshield. They might ride in the back of station wagons, nestled among picnic baskets, suitcases, and folded blankets. It seems like parents were more interested in keeping kids entertained than in keeping kids restrained.

2. Allowing Children to Buy Cigarettes for Adults

In the 1950s, it was not uncommon for a parent to send kids into a store with a few coins and ask them to buy cigarettes. A kid would enter a nearby grocery store, drug store, or gas station and order a pack of a certain type of cigarette. The store clerks would not complain much because they would assume the order came from a parent at home. Most kids would carry small pieces of paper from the adult confirming the order. Cigarettes from popular brands such as Lucky Strike, Camel, and Chesterfield were stacked at the store counter in brightly colored and eye-catching boxes. The transaction was brief, and the kid would immediately return home with the cigarettes.

3. Letting Kids Ride Freely in the Back of Pickup Trucks

Throughout the 1950s, pickup trucks were the workhorses for families, especially in rural areas. Many parents allowed their children to ride in the bed of the pickup truck for short trips around the neighborhood or in the nearby town. Children sat on wooden crates, boxes, or the metal floor of the pickup, feeling the wind rush by as they bounced along the street or country roads. The experience had a wild, kid-friendly excitement, like a miniature amusement park ride built into the rural landscape. On summer nights, children might also be allowed to ride in the bed of the pickup, sitting in the bed while parents drove to a baseball game, the grocery store, or a family gathering.

4. Letting Children Play With Realistic Toy Guns in Public

In the 1950s, toy guns for kids were ubiquitous. They looked so much like real guns that it was difficult to distinguish between the two at first glance. Cap guns made of metal from companies like Daisy and Hubley whistled, smoked, cracked, and even sparked a little when you pulled the hammer and pressed the trigger. Kids roamed the lots, the park, and the quiet streets, becoming cowboys and outlaws. They enacted grand adventures in the style of Western movies and TV shows, which dominated the screens in those days. A kid might wear a toy gun in a holster and pretend to be a sheriff rounding up robbers in the yards and streets of the neighborhood.

5. Allowing Children to Wander the Neighborhood All Day Without Supervision

Kids would go out in the morning and not return home until the street lights came on at night. The kids would roam the parks, the back alleys, the empty lots, and the trees and paths in the neighborhoods. The kids would ride their bikes over long distances, explore the construction sites, and play baseball in the empty fields. A bunch of kids could spend the entire afternoon stacking scrap wood into forts and digging up treasure in the dirt. The parents wouldn’t have any idea where the kids were all day. This type of freedom was in keeping with the spirit and the environment of the 1950s. The neighborhoods were smaller and more connected, and people knew most of the people in the neighborhoods.

6. Allowing Kids to Handle Fireworks With Minimal Supervision

Fireworks were also part of the celebrations in the 1950s, particularly during the Fourth of July in America. Parents would buy kids’ fireworks and let their little ones enjoy the celebrations. The kids would enjoy lighting sparklers, firecrackers, and Roman candles in their yards or on quiet streets. The excitement was building as kids took turns lighting these fireworks, with their parents watching from a safe distance. These were moments of pure excitement for kids, and they looked forward to these every summer season. There were no strict rules for fireworks in the 1950s, unlike today. Kids were known to run around with sparklers in their hands or try to light Roman candles in the sky.

7. Allowing Children to Sit on an Adult’s Lap in the Front Seat While Driving

In fact, in the 1950s, there were times when family car rides were like something that would make modern drivers wonder at their parents’ common sense. A child sat on their parent’s lap as they rode down the road, holding onto the steering wheel with a happy grin, and the parent sat behind them, quietly driving the vehicle. Parents thought it was just another way of having some bonding time with their kids, but it was also a very unsafe situation for all concerned! The child was just having his or her moment of pretending to be driving, and the parent was smiling away, giving some light guidance to their child. Safety in the 1950s was worlds apart from safety in today’s world.

8. Allowing Children to Use Lawn Darts During Backyard Games

Lawn darts were a popular game in the lawns of the 1950s and 1960s, a fun outdoor activity that encouraged people to come out onto the lawn for a Saturday cookout or a summer evening. The game was easy to play: large, heavy darts with sharp metal points were thrown at a circular plastic target on the lawn. Both kids and adults used the lawn, taking turns throwing the darts high into the air, watching as they sailed through the air, heading toward the target several feet away. The objective of the game was simple: try to get the dart to land within the ring, which was the target on the lawn several feet away.

9. Allowing Children to Ride Bicycles Without Helmets

Bikes were the symbol of freedom for kids in the 1950s. They would ride through the streets, skate through the schoolyards, and ride through the country roads. Helmets were almost nonexistent in the scene. Kids would ride the bikes in casual wear and ride off to meet friends or do errands for the adults. A bike could take a kid to the corner store, a baseball field, or a park. Scraped knees and dirty clothes were all part of the day as kids would ride through the streets and roads. It was not common for there to be helmet manufacturing and recommendations in the 1950s. Parents would consider the small falls and dirt on the kids as part of growing up and would not consider it a real threat.

10. Allowing Children to Hitchhike Short Distances

For the kids and teens, it was not perceived as risky entertainment; it was simply an everyday means of getting somewhere. A kid or teen would stand along the side of the road with their thumb up, hoping someone would pick them up and take them where they wanted to go. In the small towns, people knew each other and knew that someone would stop and help the teen get where they needed to go. A teen could hitchhike to school, baseball practice, or a part-time job in another town. The parents did not worry about the kids; it was just an everyday part of life in the 1950s and the years leading up to it.

11. Allowing Children to Climb High Trees Without Safety Equipment

Tree climbing is one of the activities that defined the life of kids in the 1950s. Backyards and parks were filled with trees, especially oak, maple, and elm trees, that begged to be climbed, used as forts, or just used to spy on the world from a bird’s eye view. Kids competed with each other in friendly competitions to see who could reach the top of the tree without any slip or fall, while parents looked on, seemingly with little or no supervision. There was a certain rhythm to outdoor play, balancing daring and a little risk. Safety equipment, such as helmets, harnesses, and padded surfaces, was not part of the landscape, and kids relied on their judgment and balance to keep themselves safe from any possible harm.

12. Allowing Children to Light Gas Stoves or Coal Furnaces

In many homes in the 1950s, kids were expected to contribute to the chores in the home at a very early age. A kid could be asked to light the gas stove or the coal furnace. They would be required to get the burner going before the kids had their breakfast. In colder climates, kids would be required to spark up the coal or wood fire in the furnace. All this was considered part of the natural order of things and not a dangerous task. Parents believed that by having kids do these chores, they were encouraging independence and responsibility in their kids. Family was all about working together, and this included the kids at home.

13. Allowing Children to Ride in the Cargo Area of Station Wagons

In the 1950s, station wagons were popular family cars, and they were loved because of the ample space they offered in the cargo area. The parents used to fold down the seats at the back, so the kids could travel at the back, along with the luggage, groceries, or picnic items carried in the station wagon. Some station wagons even offered additional seating at the back, facing into the cargo area, effectively turning the back of the station wagon into a casual seating area. This was something the kids loved, as they could wave at people coming from behind because of the large window at the back of the station wagon.

14. Allowing Children to Play in Active Construction Sites

In the 1950s, in a neighborhood bursting with new homes and high aspirations, construction sites began to appear on every corner. To children in the area, the undeveloped lots were like magnets – full of wood, half-finished rooms, and beams to walk along like tightropes. A group of kids could spend an afternoon drifting by, making the site a castle, a fortress, or a hideout. While parents may have known that their children’s adventures were taking place, they generally didn’t intervene unless something went wrong. In those days, the security perimeter around construction zones wasn’t as tightly drawn as it is today; fences, signs, and cones were scarce in residential areas.

15. Allowing Children to Burn Trash in Backyard Barrels

Backyard trash burning was a common practice in the 1950s, particularly in rural areas. Many houses used a metal barrel in the backyard, where trash was thrown into the barrel, which was then burned. Sometimes, even kids were asked to help, carrying small bundles of trash and throwing them into the fire. In some cases, they even lit the fire, under the guidance of an elder person, using matches or kindling. Thick smoke used to appear in the sky, a common phenomenon in the backyard of houses in many towns across the nation. It seemed like a practical solution to disposing of trash at the time, as garbage collection was not available in most places.

16. Allowing Children to Ride Horses Without Protective Gear

For many rural kids in the 1950s, riding horses was more of a daily routine than a sport. They would hop on, bareback or with a simple saddle, with little to no protective gear at all. Helmets were not common, and everyday clothing, such as jeans, boots, or even shorts, was not uncommon while riding. Farms and fields were the natural playgrounds where kids learned to navigate through trails, over fences, and along dirt roads. Riding was a way of life, a way of teaching kids to be more responsible and confident, a tradition learned from previous generations. It was a normal part of life because so many adults did the same. Of course, accidents did happen, but they were viewed as opportunities to learn balance and control.

17. Allowing Children to Swim in Rivers and Lakes Without Lifeguards

For kids, the 1950s saw the rise of natural areas as popular destinations to cool off when the weather turned warm. The river, the pond, and the lakes that were located near the town became popular “hangouts” when kids went there to swim. The kids would go there in droves, some going as far as they could on their bikes and on foot. Once they reached the destination, they would dive off the dock, swing from the rope swings, and leap from the low-hanging branches into the cool waters below. Lifeguards were not common, and the kids were left to the supervision of the older kids who were in charge of the younger ones.

18. Allowing Children to Deliver Newspapers Before Dawn

Kids as young as the 1950s would be assigned the task of newspaper delivery. Before the sun rises, boys and girls would line up at the distribution center to collect their thick stacks of newspapers. They would then sling these newspapers into sturdy canvas bags and proceed to deliver the newspapers on foot or by bicycle as they made their way through the quiet streets while the majority of the people slept. The glow of the streetlights and the quiet of dawn provided the setting for these young people as they delivered newspapers to people’s porches and driveways. Delivering the newspaper before going to school was a great learning experience in terms of discipline and a good work ethic.

19. Allowing Children to Handle Household Chemicals Without Protection

For instance, in the 1950s, kids helped with cleaning the house with potent chemicals. A child might be asked to clean the floor with ammonia, a potent chemical, or clean surfaces in the bathroom with potent chemicals stored under the sink. The child might not be required to wear gloves, masks, or even read the labels, as such cleaning materials were usually not labeled. In addition, the materials usually did not come with labels, but only with what the parent might tell the child regarding the usage of the chemicals. In the 1950s, people were more focused on completing the cleaning tasks as fast as possible, not on safety with chemicals. Many people did not know the health risks of breathing in potent fumes while cleaning.

20. Allowing Children to Walk Alone to School Across Busy Roads

In the 1950s, kids walked to school on their own. They traversed blocks or even miles without a grown-up standing near them. They leaped over intersections, walked on highways, and took detours through fields or skinny corridors. Some would space out along the route and then meet up again and continue walking in groups. Adults assumed that kids knew enough about driving on the road and safety in general to make this walk on their own. The roads were not as congested in the past as they are now, so many adults thought it was a feasible journey for a kid to make on their own. However, as time went on, more cars on the road and a growing awareness about safety led to a change in this perception.

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