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more 1940s topics Nostalgia Cafe main page Nostalgia Cafe site map | The 1940s | ||
  Tom's Trolleybus Pix Trackless Trolleys and Trolleybuses Downtown Greensboro Memories Philadelphia Trolley Tracks | ----- |
In The City
In the 1940s, the city was a world of department stores, crowded sidewalks, fancy hotels and fire escapes. It was the hustle and bustle of subways and streetcars, the glamour of theaters and nightclubs. In the 20th century, our predominantly rural lifestyle was shifting to an urban one. In the 1940s, we had passed the halfway point. 55 percent of us lived in cities and medium-sized towns in 1940. In most cities, a building of 40 stories qualified as a skyscraper. New York City had the world's tallest....the Chrysler Building with 77 stories, and the Empire State Building with 102 stories.  Many people didn't have a car, so public transportation was very important. To get around town, they rode buses, streetcars that were powered by an overhead cable or electrified track, and trackless trolleys. Philadelphia introduced the first trackless trolleys in 1923, which were powered by an overhead cable but didn't require any tracks. Also called trolleybuses, they were used mostly during the 1940s and 1950s.  Click here for more sights from the city! | ||
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Businesses &
| ----- |   The fair meant different things to different people. For the farmer, it was a chance to see the latest innovations in tractors, incubators and seed varieties. For his wife, it was a chance to enter her pickles, preserves or pies in a contest and maybe win a prize. For kids, it was cotton candy, ice cream, soda pop and rides! For teenagers, it meant entering your calf in the 4-H show. And for young people, it was a chance to be romantic with your sweetheart, or maybe meet someone new. For everyone, it meant entertainment and a chance to try new things. Shows, contests, races, hot air balloon rides, sideshow curiosities, games....you name it, they had it! And speaking of trying new things....customers at the 1942 Texas State Fair were treated to the first corn dogs, which were invented especially for the fair. | ||
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Small Towns The pace of small town life in the 1940s was relaxed. Shopping centers weren't common yet, which meant that most stores and businesses were still located on Main Street. Typical communities had parks surrounded by town squares, parking meters, churches, barbershops, dry-cleaners and drugstores. Friendly telephone operators connected your calls, and everybody knew everybody else.  Time for some male bonding down at the barbershop! 
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other pages in this section:
Nightlife----------
Travel
Shopping & Dining
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