I’ll admit that this post has less car content than most of our vintage galleries. But the gatherings in these are rather large, and there’s only so much space for cars to appear. Still, even if we’re a car-oriented site, I also know that the people and surroundings in these photos are of interest. With that in mind, here’s a gallery of groups, families or otherwise, posing along some cars.
Yes, as we’ve said in comments and previous posts, there was a time when posing next to a car was a thing. A gone reality these images nicely prove. Also, I would think most of these folks were riding in more than one car… Or so I hope.
We finally started making both cars and houses suitable for large families in the ’80s, at the same time when we stopped having large families.
In the ’50s large families lived in 3 bed 1 bath tract houses and drove ordinary sedans.
We had a neighborhood gathering just last night and we were discussing that same thing! Wine and pizza too…..
Sure did. Everyone had a 3/1 1100 sq foot ranch or split for a family of 6 or more.
So true, we now live in a 900 sq ft 3 br 1 bath house with small eat-in kitchen that we bought (originally to rent out before our own 3 kids flew the coop) from the original owner’s family who had bought it in 1955. He and his wife had a family of 5, all 3 children being boys. Hard to imagine, but it was very common at the time. Growing up in Towson many if not most families had 3 to 5 children. The full-size sedan and wagon were ubiquitous at the time mainly for this reason.
Paging Eric703! Where was that lead photo taken? A gun shop, TV repair, precision grinding and a steak house with takeout. And a small Quonset hut. Wouldn’t see that lineup on one block in most towns today.
Thanks for tracking down these photos, Rich … I really enjoy them.
I first thought it was 2 teachers and a classroom of kids. But then I realized the way they were dressed, probably not.
Aha! I love this stuff. It was taken in Burbank, California. Then-and-now comparison and StreetView link below.
The picture appears to have been taken directly in front a church (another varied aspect to that block’s tenant mix). The Church of Christ is still there. Given that, I’d presume this was a church or Sunday School group.
https://maps.app.goo.gl/MGWrxDxTmpo9Lc9Q9
Two “Rambler” wagons, across the street form each other!
Thanks Eric. It’s surprisingly unchanged for 65 years in California.
With the fact that most of the kids have baskets I’d say this was taken on Easter Sunday just before they let the kids loos for the Easter Egg Hunt.
And this was the gun shop. Apparently operated by an obsessive firearms collector, and his 20,000 guns took up so much space that he hung a few thousand from the ceiling.
Photo #1: There’s a Stenzel’s Steak House in Burbank CA in 1946—but I know the CC photo is years later…..
We found it at the same time!
Photo #1: Burbank it must be, with the Taylor firm right next door even in 1965:
That Studebaker truck reminds me of how virtually every old red vehicle appeared unless the owner was obsessive about keeping it garaged and polished.
And the following shot has me wondering if those are trim rings around 1955-56 Ford Hubcaps on that 63 Galaxie.
Packing kids in the back of a pickup truck is still common in rural Arkansas. When my nephew would borrow my old Dodge for camping trips, the kids loved a slow ride around the campsite.
Rode from Butler PA to Slippery Rock PA; reverse trip as well. Was a “81ish” Dodge Pickup.
At the time, except for the “downpour/thunder shower”, coming back to “Butler”, I quite had a good time..
Summer and “youth”!
I remember riding thirty miles down a two lane highway in the bed of a rusty old farm pickup for ice cream in Summer .
I don’t know about Arkansas but California cops will go berserk if they see any passengers in the bed these days .
-Nate
Yep! When I was small my grandpa owned an International KB whose paint job looked just like the Stude. He later traded it for a 1950 Ford pickup painted black. After a few years the black had that weathered look, too. He always parked it in the same spot. The passenger running board, which always faced north actually had moss growing on it. He had that thing for years until his death in 1982. My brother and I abused it when we were teenagers, but it never failed us or Grandpa.
I spent a lot of time in the back of a tired old Studebaker pickup like that, at the Mennonite farm back in Iowa, the wind in my face as Mr. Yoder drove to Kalona or some friend’s farm. Came very close to falling out one time too.
The picture of the 63 Ford shows the oldest woman holding a picture of what I assume is departed relatives. With that in mind we could be looking at four or five generations of this family in one picture.
2nd photo:
The grimace of the young man to the far left reminds me of Malcolm in the Middle. Stuck between an older, mean brother and younger brother who gets all the attention. Also, I had a few of those madras shirts in the past. I liked them, but as most items, comes and goes out of style.
4th photo:
Looks like some type of wedding anniversary based on the lady holding the photo. Look how well dressed these folks are for such a function in the past. Today, the dress code would be shorts, a T-shirt, and Lululemon leggings.
Bottom photo:
Looks like the child closest to the camera got a failing grade for his Wolf Pack activity. Get the impression we would see his photo again in the post office as the years progressed.
As a little kid in the 1970s, it was now quite rare to see very large families, here in Ottawa. As the Big Three concurrently, offered among their biggest cars ever.
My dad was like a number of Canadians, with a growing family in the late 1950s, a new VW Bus met his budget, and needs best.
It was all families of one or two kids in my neighbourhood in west end Toronto growing up in the sixties.
Frugal automobile choices were the way to go back then.
Throughout my primary school years in Ottawa (1958-64), a couple of friends and classmates each came from a family of ten kids.
After getting my engineering degree in 1974, I moved 70 km west of Ottawa, working for a small tech startup. There was a young admin from a nearby village who came to work each day impeccably dressed, and almost never wore the same outfit. After a few months, I had to ask… Turns out she had seven sisters, all the same size, and they shared a common wardrobe! I don’t remember how many brothers she had.
Another young woman, who worked in production, had 19 sisters and one brother. Not sure how the poor guy dealt with the bathroom situation… She got married at some point, and told me some 600 people attended her wedding!
I grew up outside Perth, Ontario, where my parents moved to, when they retired in August 1975. So, I suspect we were located very close to each other, during the late 1970s! As Perth was roughly 80kms southwest of Ottawa.
I knew some larger families in Lanark County. But they usually maxed out, with around four to five siblings.
Some years back I visited a small General Store in Livengood, Alaska, run by a genial man with his wife and eight kids. His vehicle? An old, eight door Checker Aerobus. Perfect.
The kid on the far left in photo number 2 looks thoroughly unimpressed at his inclusion in this group shot. He’d prefer to be doing almost anything else at this moment.
Coulda got all of the Cub Scouts in the ’57 Olds Fiesta wagon, I believe they had three rows of seats.
I agree on the first pic with ’57 Ford and Buick, likely a church group on Easter Sunday. I think there are 19 kids….
Back in the day, folks dressed up, just to go to the grocery store, or other shopping. Definitely did for church or formal occasions. I know several ladies of my mother’s generation that didn’t even go outside to do yardwork, without the hair and makeup being “just so”….how they could do this in Gulf Coast summer heat and humidity, I do not know…..
Thanks so much! Lots to enjoy here.
As I’ve said before here, I grew up in Southern California. The neighbors behind us had 15, count ‘em, 15 children. They had 2 Ford wagons. Amazing to watch them all get out after going somewhere.
I grew up in Wisconsin where it gets cold in the winter. We lived in a one bedroom house with a converted attic and no central heating. I still had it better than friend. He lived with his 9 siblings in a two bedroom house. Boys in one bedroom and the girls in the other. The parents slept on a hide-a-bed in the living room.
The kid sitting in the box of the Studie pickup near the tailgate has got his slingshot loaded and ready to fire.
Where are the black people??
Valerie :
Probably working whilst the white folks goofed off taking pictures =8-) .
-Nate