Thursday, January 11, 2024

1960's

 A Winter in the 1960's must have had a fair amount of snow.   I recall that some times riding the school bus that the snow banks were almost as tall as the telephone poles in the ditch....the old fashioned T poles that were probably only about 12 maybe 15 feet tall, remember all the glass insulators lined up on top of the pole? 

 Snow removal equipment was not like it is today.  Heck for that matter School Busses weren't either they were cold.  You had to scrape the frost off the window to see out or get real close to the window and blow on it.  No one ever took off their hats or coats on the bus. 


I believe this photo was taken on the gravel road just North of the farm I grew up on.  I will guess that the photo was taken in the Spring as there is some water on the road.  My Mom is driving and that is my other baby brother standing up in the front seat.  My Dad must have taken the photograph.  The car is a 1962 or 1964 Chevy. 

Far Side

23 comments:

Val Ewing said...

Awesome photo! I recall those times...the winter of 1965 when we had the great snow storm which included Chicago and the Suburbs.
We were the only folks on the block with milk. My mom would be 100lbs of powdered skim milk each year for the winter.
ICK.
But we sure had milk to pass out to other families. I still have photos from then!

Sallysmom said...

What a wonderful photo to have.

Maebeme said...

I've seen similar photos and believe I have one of my aunt standing in front of huge drift on the side of the road that dwarfs her about the same time frame. I'll have to look for it.

It's amazing to me that vehicles were able to make their way through such huge piles. You certainly wouldn't want to meet any one on the same road though.

Your memories of the school bus are similar to mine. I started school in 1965, and there was heater on the bus but it didn't do much more than keep the driver warm.

DJan said...

Those were the days without seat belts or restraints of any kind, if I remember right. It looks very cold!

Jim and Barb's Adventures said...

I was a wee lad in 62, but I recall much more snow in the 70's than we get today.

Ed said...

At the old homestead, our road was often drifted to the extremes due to the sunken road grade and lack of hedge rows. I remember after one storm, my dad tried to clear the road for the school bus but could only push a hole through one drift at the end of our driveway with the tractor and loader. Somewhere, there is a picture of that school bus driving through the hole pushed through the snow drift.

Tired Teacher said...

Brrr! I definitely remember riding many miles on those cold school buses.

Paul said...

Looks like a 64 to me.
Turn signals in the bumper, eyebrows on the headlights.
Ask Far Guy!

Sandra said...

Wonderful photo! I lived in St. Paul and I remember snow banks that seemed the size of mountains. We climbed them and had a lot of fun.

Red said...

Snow clearing equipment was much different in those days. Yes, I remember the cold buses. I road the buses in the 50's when they were antiques.

Terry and Linda said...

Yep Kids stood by Mom so her arm could come out FAST to protect you. I've done it for my kids also

Rita said...

Yes, I remember snow up to the roof of the back of the house (suburb of Minneapolis). Dad shoveled out so we could use the front door because the snow was somewhat lower in the front of the house. My bedroom window faced the back yard and was snowed over quite a few times.

Sandi said...

I remember standing on banks of snow waiting for the school bus. I grew up in Michigan. In some places people would put brightly colored styrofoam balls on the end of their car antenna so they could find their car after a snowstorm or a plow drive-by.

Granny Marigold said...

Isn't it a wonder how children survived without seat belts? We usually had a stationwagon and the flattened out back was a great place to play.

At Home In New Zealand said...

That sounds sooooo cold - but it helps me feel a little cooler today as the summer heat sets in again! :)

Jo-Anne's Ramblings said...

I can't imagine living in such a climate

Miss Merry said...

I'm not sure if the snow was higher in the 60's or I was lower, LOL. I do remember my dad building us snow houses in drifts that were higher than we were!

L. D. said...

Those Chevies were heavy weights compared to today's cars so they would be a little better in snow. I remember gravel roads being cleared out with high walls back in the the 60s.

www.self-sufficientsam.blogspot.com said...

Cool photo...another one from back in the day when there were no seat belts and no child safety seats! It's amazing we all lived! LOL!

diane in northern wis said...

Love the old picture of your Mom and brother in the car. Last year we had snowbanks like that but so far, not this year.

Betsy said...

I used to stand up next to my Dad's shoulder too. One time a car jerked backwards when the light changed, (he must have popped the clutch), I fell forward and my head went through the windshield. Never again did I stand up like that. I had to go to the doctors every day for weeks and get glass picked out of my head. He told my Mom that my plastic headband saved my life. I hit the windshield on the headband and it snapped in two. I also remember snow like that. We're expecting another blizzard tonight and tomorrow. We're supposed to have -49F - -55F wind chill tonight and tomorrow. Yuck! We're paying for our beautiful November and December now. :-)
Blessings,
Betsy

aurora said...

Yes! 60's is my birth decade and I remember birthday snow in early Winter, where feet of snow blocked our doors. Now, we wait until January for Winter and snow to show up. To which I say, at least it shows up!!

Wanderingcatstudio said...

Great pic!
We see the insulators at antique shops all the time