Photos From 50 to 100 Years Ago To Put Life As We Know It Today In Perspective

There is something inherently fascinating about the past. It seems to be a universally accepted idea that people really enjoy looking at photos, documents, or even personal stories and anecdotes from years past.

With the invention of the internet and, subsequently, Reddit, we are able to not only share our own photos and stories that have been passed down, but we can also experience those of others. This is especially true thanks to the subreddit r/TheWayWeWere.

r/TheWayWeWere is a community where Redditors share a glimpse into life 50+ years ago. According to their description: “What was **normal everyday life** like for people living 50, 100, or more years ago? Featuring old photos, scanned documents, articles, and personal anecdotes that offer a glimpse into the past.”

This subreddit has grown to be one of the most popular and largest vintage archives online, with more than 568,000 subscribers. And for good reason: there is something addictive and awe-inspiring about scrolling through really old photos.

We’ve collected 55 photos that range from 50 to over 200 years old—photos that share a glimpse into the lives of families, people at work, and life in general.

Continue scrolling to check out why so many people subscribe to r/TheWayWeWere.

1. "A Parisian Woman With Her Cat In Her Cannabis Garden, 1910"

FNaXQ

2. "This Is My Grandma Dorothy. She Was A Dress Designer In The 50s, Which Always Made This Photo More Funny To Me. She Passed Away Today At Age 89. A Life Well Lived"

crapidrawatwork

3. "Dad Showing Off His Skill To The Surprise Of His Little Daughter In Melbourne, Australia, Ca. 1940s"

TynShouldHaveLived

4. "My Great-Grandmother In The Early 1900s. I Thought She Looked Too Awesome Not To Share"

allerena85

5. "The Day Daddy Came Home. Gunner Hector Murdoch Had Been Gone Over Four Years, Most Of It As A Prisoner Of War In Singapore. His Wife Rosina And Son John Hadn't Known If He Was Dead Or Alive. He Got Home On His Birthday"

GaGator43

6. "Caught On The Firescape, 1946"

froggysaysno

7. "London's First Black Police Officer, PC Norwell Roberts, On Point Duty Near Charing Cross Station, 1968"

Manipulatrix

8. "This Is Hazel, My Grandmother-In-Law. 1916"

Booboogirl53

9. "1976 vs. 2018; 42 Years And We're Still Going Strong"

NoBallsNoBabies

10. "Cats Blackie & Brownie Catching Squirts Of Milk During Milking At Arch Badertscher's Dairy Farm In Fresno, California, 1954"

SamoF82M4

11. "Protesting The High School Dress Code That Banned Slacks For Girls, Brooklyn, Ca. 1940"

closecaxton

12. "The Rolled-Stockings Trend Of The 1920s Brought On A Fad Of Hand-Painted Knees"

GaGator43

13. "My Ridiculously Attractive Grandparents Sitting For A Portrait In The Early 1940s"

reddit.com

14. "Ladies At A Lesbian Club In Chelsea, 1953"

blomster6

15. "Reddit Seems To Love My Taita (Grandma), So Here Is Another One Of Her From 1950s Beirut"

afterlife121

16. "Gay Men Pose For A Photo While Being Detained At A Police Station For Being Homosexuals In Mexico, 1935"

monderigon

17. "This 1955 Photo Is One Of Walter Chandoha’s Most Famous Shots. “My Daughter Paula And The Kitten Both ‘Smiled’ For The Camera At The Same Time… But The Cat’s Not Smiling; He’s Meowing"

panuchazo

18. "My Mother Made Us Matching Dresses For A Fancy Party Back In 1954"

dittidot

19. "Women Trainees Of The LAPD Practice Firing Their Newly Issued Revolvers, 1948"

WildeAquarius

20. "My Great-Great-Grandmother Sometime In The 1890s"

hey123456789123

21. "Class Divide In Britain, 1930s"

Noah_Fence-taken

22. "Listening To The Radio On The Beach, Circa 1940s"

notbob1959

23. "‘Our Michael’, 1938"

ufooooh

24. "Police Officer Unaware Of The Imminent Danger, Chicago, 1959"

Slow-moving-sloth

25. "My Parents’ Wedding Photo, Okinawa, 1964"

reed555

26. "A Native American Girl Of The Kiowa Tribe, Oklahoma, 1894"

froggysaysno

27. "Saw This Photo Posted Here... Noticed I Have The Photo That My Grandmother Took That Day. (Bought At An Antique Shop Years Ago In Phoenix)"

KSD4

28. "Mary Wallace: First Female Bus Driver For Chicago Transit Authority (1974)"

AxlCobainVedder

29. "A Sailor 'Meets' His Baby For The First Time After Fourteen Months At Sea, 1940s"

Anyoldcrap

30. "My Grandpa (Left) And His Best Friend Willie Hall During The Korean War. Those Smiles Say It All"

lowrider4488

31. "My Mom On Her Wedding Day, November 1951"

YCVick

32. "A Mostly Happy Family Outing At Chicken Bone Beach, The Segregated Section Of Atlantic City's Beach Area, New Jersey, 1950s (Photographed By John W. Mosley)"

Str33twise84

33. "My Grandfather, Great-Grandfather, Great-Great-Grandfather, And Great-Great-Great-Grandmother, Ca. 1918"

RckLbstr

34. "My Grandmother And Mom, Circa 1974. My Grandmother Took My Mother To National Parks Over The Course Of A Few Months, Just The Two Of Them"

mghobby68

35. "Sisters In Skirts, 1950s"

Str33twise84

36. "After Spending More Than Five Years In A North Vietnamese Camp, Lt. Col. Robert L. Stirm Is Reunited With His Family At Travis AFB, March 13, 1973"

HellsJuggernaut

37. "Me And My Best Friend Rocky Watching TV, 1959"

marbleriver

38. "Vintage Photo From A Family Album, Freeport, IL"

Darkwater64

39. "Last Picture Of My Great Uncle Kennith, Before He Drowned In The Buffalo River, 1940s. He Gave His Life Saving My Grandpa"

teenietina182

40. "My Great-Grandfather Who Was Too Poor To Afford A Suit In Sicily, So He Had To Pose In Front Of A Cardboard Cut-Out, 1930s"

HappyyItalian

41. "Offerings To The Unknown Dead, Kyoto, Japan, 1963"

deniscard

42. "Young Oyster Shuckers, Port Royal, South Carolina, 1909"

reddit.com

43. "Grandma And Papa In 1937. She Passed Away Today At 100 Years Old"

nosoup4me

44. "The Wedding Rings Of My Great-Grandmother, Great-Great-Grandmother, Great-Great-Great-Grandmother, And Great-Great-Great-Great-Grandmother, The Oldest Dating Back To 1832!"

FriendshipWaffles

45. "My American Grandmother Visiting Athens In The 1960s"

ferballz

46. "My Grandpa’s Schoolhouse In Texas, Ca. 1930s. He Was Always Embarrassed By This Picture Because He Was Too Poor To Afford Shoes"

thenewfrost

47. "The 70s Transition: My Parents In 1968 And Again In 1970"

Yoojay

48. "Two Pals (1920)"

suzuki_hayabusa

49. "Dublin, 1962"

notbob1959

50. "Me Ready For Friday Night Lights, 1969"

dittidot

51. "Fatherhood, 1970s"

Altruistic_Ad5472

52. "My Grandma and Parents Taught Me To Save Newspapers From Major US Events As A Reminder Of Our Collective Human Experiences. I Have 9/11, Bin Laden’s Death, And Obama Winning The Election. For The Holidays, I Was Gifted The Whole Family Collection. I Have Goosebumps. Here Are A Few Of The Oldest."

friendlyMissAnthrope

53. "My Great-Grandparents On Their Honeymoon (1936)"

tacosupremeacid

54. "A Mother With Her Children, 1,800 Years Ago. Alexandria, Roman Egypt."

KosherNazi

55. "Getting Cooled Air Piped Into The Car While Enjoying A Meal At A Drive-In Restaurant. Houston, Texas, 1957."

Systepup

I don't know about you, but it's hard not to smile while scrolling through these pictures. Love in all forms—romantic, parental, friendship, and even for pets—hasn't changed, no matter how much time has passed or how much the world has changed.

Did you have a favorite picture from this collection? Let us know in the comments, and be sure to share this with your friends!