What was family life like in the 1930s?

Economic hardship caused family breakdowns. Marriages became strained, though many couples could not afford to separate. Divorce rates dropped during the 1930s though abandonments increased. Some men deserted their families out of embarrassment or frustration: This was sometimes called a “poor man's divorce.”

What was the lifestyle like in the 1930s?

With the Great Depression, children and their families were greatly impacted—millions lived in poverty and had very little to eat, let alone money to spare for entertainment. Read more to compare and contrast how Annie may have lived in the 1930s, versus how you live today.

What were the family experiences during the Great Depression?

The Depression had a powerful impact on family life. It forced couples to delay marriage and drove the birthrate below the replacement level for the first time in American history. The divorce rate fell, for the simple reason that many couples could not afford to maintain separate households or pay legal fees.

What were the main activities for children like in the 1930s?

Other childhood pastimes included listening to the wireless, board games such as Ludo and Snakes and Ladders, playing with toy trains (Hornby), toy aeroplanes, dolls and dolls houses. Boys and girls could also join the Cubs, Brownies, Boy or Girl Scouts. Trips to the cinema were very popular.

What was it like to be a kid in the 1930s?

Kids used whatever was just laying around and created their own scenarios, games, and toys. Girls made their own rag dolls, children played schoolyard games like jump rope, tag, and "Ring Around The Rosie"; children generally spent most of their free time playing outside and exploring.

History Brief: Daily Life in the 1930s

What did girls do in the 1930s?

Women's roles in 1930's America were still mostly domestic. They were typically in charge of home management and social duties, while men were usually the breadwinners. However, after the 19th Amendment, which granted women the right to vote, was passed in 1920, there was a shift in women's roles.

How did families survive the Great Depression?

Farm Families and the Great Depression

Farmers could grow their own food in large gardens and raise livestock to provide meat. Chickens supplied both meat and eggs, while dairy cows produced milk and cream. Many women had sewing skills and began producing much of their family's clothing.

What were the days like for most families during the 1930s?

The hardships of the Great Depression threw family life into disarray. Both marriage and birth rates declined in the decade after the crash. The most vulnerable members of society—children, women, minorities, and the working class—struggled the most. Children, in particular, felt the brunt of poverty.

How did children live in the 1930s?

City children were often left alone while their parents were working. Children living in cities also worked in factories, sold newspapers, or shined shoes to help their families earn money. Country children often worked long hours on family farms or hunted food; many did not have electricity in their homes.

What were common hobbies in the 1930s?

Among the hobbies that emerged: stamp collecting, music making, woodworking and birdwatching. The growth in hobbies during the Great Depression was in large part due to the staggering number of people out of work.

What happened to families as the Great Depression got worse?

It was the worst economic disaster in American history. Farm prices fell so drastically that many farmers lost their homes and land. Many went hungry. Faced with this disaster, families split up or migrated from their homes in search of work.

How did the Depression affect average families?

With no unemployment insurance and typically with only one breadwinner, the loss of wages had an immediate and devastating effect on families, often leading to eviction and homelessness. People squeezed in with relatives when possible or begged landlords to stay on rent-free.

Did people sell their children during the Depression?

Many people bought and sold these children, not as family, but to work almost like slaves with horrible living conditions and treatment.

What were homes like in the 1930s?

Areas of herringbone brickwork, tiled walls, weatherboards and wood-framed windows with iron casements and diamond-shaped leaded panes are clues to a house from the 1930s. Roofs were red clay tiles rather than slate, and chimney stacks were more elaborate.

What were women's lives like in the 1930s?

Women had the vote, education and divorce reforms and at least the right to be lawyers and MPs. Skirts got shorter and so did hair. Women smoked cigarettes, danced the jitterbug and – those who could afford it – drove motor cars.

What was the worst decade in the 1930s?

The Great Depression was a social and economic disaster that brought misery to millions worldwide, making the 1930s one of the worst decades in history.

What did kids do in 1930?

Most children played in the streets as there were not many cars. Marbles, hopscotch, skipping and football were popular games. In summer, cricket was played in the streets or on village greens.

What activities did families do in the 1930s?

They listened to a variety of radio shows or took in a cheap movie. They also took part in sports, fads, or fun contests that didn't cost anything at all. The 1930s was part of a time that is called the "Golden Age of Radio." Around 40 percent of families owned a radio.

How did the family unit change during the 1930s?

The stability of families was tested by the Great Depression, as unemployment and lower wages forced Americans to delay marriage and having children. The divorce rate fell during this time because it was expensive and few could afford it. However, by 1940 almost 2 million married couples lived apart.

What was the average family size in the 1930s?

The average number of people per household was 5.55 in 1850, 5.04 in 1880, 4.76 in 1900 and 4.54 in 1910. It declined to 4.34 in 1920, 4.11 in 1930, 3.67 in 1940, 3.37 in 1950 and 3.33 in 1960. The Census Bureau projects that the average will continue declining, to 2.48 in the year 2000, from the current 2.67.

What becomes one of the most popular household items during the Great Depression?

By 1936, farmers were losing (25, 15) million dollars a day. (Television, radio) is one of the few things that bring comfort to those who stay. (Radios, stereos) become the country's most popular household item.

What was the average family income during the Great Depression?

The average income was $1,368, and the average unemployment rate in the 1930s was 18.26 percent, up from the average of 5.2 percent in the 1920s.

Did families lose their homes during the Great Depression?

A staggering 273,000 Americans lost their homes in 1932, and even more suffered foreclosure in the following year. Americans simply did not have the wherewithal to keep up with mortgage payments when crushing stagflation hit. Some things have not changed since the onset of the Depression.

What was the ideal woman in the 1930s?

She had a round, high bosom, a slim but not wasp-like waist, and gently rounded hips. My, how times have changed — especially when it comes to the ideal female form. And now thanks to the archives of LIFE Magazine, we know what was in vogue in the 1930s.

What was the most popular thing in 1930s?

What were popular trends in the 1930s? Jazz and swing music, the Art Deco movement, and inexpensive forms of recreation were popular trends in the 1930s. Movies and plays with the themes of hope and humor were central to American life.