People Enjoying Life In Their Cars — Vintage Photos From The 1950s-1960s

Text by Patrick Bell.

Our focus today is everyday life with automobiles.  Life has changed greatly in the last seventy or so years, and that really stands out in these images. There are always pluses and minuses to any change, but the constant is that change does occur.  Let’s take a look at the way it used to be.

Two ladies and a cute tyke were enjoying a warm day in the front seat of a 1949 Buick Super convertible with Dynaflow Drive.  As was perfectly normal in that era, nobody was belted in, because there were no belts.

Does this lady look a bit guilty?  She apparently had been caught having a snack along with her coffee.  A Thermos was within reach on the floor, while the driver/photographer’s coffee cup was on the dash with a map.  They were riding in a 1950-1952 Buick 4 door with Dynaflow Drive.

This well dressed lady may have been a professional as she had a name tag on her lapel.  She was studying a fold out map of the Cape Ann Trail, which is in Massachusetts.  It was a rainy day, and they were stopped at an overlook.  The car appears to also be a 1950-1952 Buick 4 door.

These folks were taking a lunch break while traveling through a mountainous area in a 1949 Dodge Wayfarer Sedan.  The man was using a propane tank for a seat (ouch), and the camp stove was the table.  The Wayfarer was a new entry level line in 1949, a smaller and less expensive Dodge.

A lady was resting in the back of a 1953 Chevrolet Two Ten Handyman wagon.  She was leaning on a red bumper jack.  The car was parked in a gravel parking lot, and this view gives you the impression they were alone.  Perhaps they were early for an event of some kind.

Here was a lady holding a baby in the front seat of a 1959 Chevrolet Impala Sport Coupe on a wintry road.  Holding your baby was a sign of good parenting in that era, but that is no longer the case when you are riding in a car.

This little guy looks like he was asleep at the wheel.  A vintage car seat such as this one was only meant to keep the child seated, not protected in any kind of crash situation.  But it did keep him/her from crawling around while the driver was attempting to pay attention to the road.  The car was a 1959 Cadillac Sixty-Two Four Window Sedan.

Now we are at a parking lot that could have been in a national park.  The lady behind the wheel of the 1956 Plymouth Savoy Club Sedan was relaxing after a spell at the wheel.  This was about all you could do in a non-reclining bench seat, other than lay down.  Of course you could not drive in that position, but to bend your back and legs a little different, and even take a snooze, that would work.

Further down the line was a blue Oldsmobile convertible, either a 1951 Ninety-Eight or a 1953 Super 88.  Then a two tone 1956 Chrysler New Yorker 4 door Newport Hardtop, and a white 1955 Ford Country Squire wagon.  And on the left edge a 1954 Dodge.

Riding in the back of a station wagon was a very common activity.  It was done with seat up or down, and nobody was strapped in.  I remember two round trips from Anchorage, Alaska to Boise, Idaho, in the back of a Studebaker Lark.  They were five day trips each way.
The shape of the “D” pillar indicates a 1961-1964 full size GM wagon, and the seat upholstery style points to a 1961 Buick LeSabre.  It was towing a trailer, and was parked when this image was shot.

A lady was powdering her nose, freshening up after a ride in a top down convertible.  You don’t see this anymore, as the advances in make up have modified the procedure.  It looks like her straw basket style purse was hanging from the mirror, but I think that was an illusion.  She was sitting in a 1960 Pontiac Bonneville.

It looks like these folks were drying off after a water experience.  Their booth was a 1960 Dodge Dart Pioneer 4 door sedan.  The air ducts on the dash that can be seen through the windshield show it was equipped with factory air conditioning, and a rear seat speaker can be seen the through the back glass.  Passing by was a 1958 Ford Custom 300 Tudor Sedan.

There were four people in this back seat with room for one or two more out of the picture to the left.  This was only good for short trips, especially with adults, and you had to be good friends.  But you could stuff six or eight kids back there if the need arose.  Of course, all that is no longer legal.
There were no clues to ID this car other than it was a full size sedan.

One look at this image and you can see why coupes went out of style.  And when you factor in the back seat child safety seat for young children that is now required, it is easy to understand.  A 1966 Ford Mustang was not known for its roomy back seat, but when in a pinch you do what is necessary. This Mustang may have been a “Sprint Edition”, a special edition model offered to boost the sales of six cylinder cars.  It included a console, side stripe, and wire wheel covers.

To close we will take a ride on a ferry boat.  Perhaps someone will recognize it or the partial name along the top edge of the image.  Two Chevrolets were visible, with at least three people in the back seat of the white car, and one on the outside.  It was a 1964 Impala Sport Sedan, and the blue one was a 1957 One-Fifty or Two-Ten with V8 power.

Thanks for joining us and have a great day!

 

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