Take A Journey Back: 85 Vintage Photos Capturing “The Golden Age Of Travel”
by Miglė Miliūtė, Gabija Palšytė · Bored PandaADVERTISEMENT
Nowadays, traveling is not only a favored hobby, but a necessity, too, for some people, who can probably no longer remember their life without it. But whether it’s vacation time or a business trip, they have plenty of options to choose from to get themselves from point A to point B. Even if the destination is on the other end of the world, they can get there in roughly a day, which was once a thing difficult to imagine.
Clearly, many things seemed impossible at a certain point in time; but, thanks to the development in technology and engineering, quite a few have become reality. If you’re curious to take a step back in time and see what travel looked like back in the 19-20th centuries, you’re in luck, as today we’re focusing on the period between 1830-1955.
On the list below you will find some fascinating pictures, as shared by the ‘Golden Age Of Travel 1830-1955’ Facebook group that depict everything from the first subway ride in New York, to German monorails, and much more. So wait no longer, scroll down to browse them and make sure to upvote your favorites!
This post may include affiliate links.
Baby Strollers Strapped To The Front Of The Bus In Opawa, New Zealand (1950s)
1905 Woods Electric Car
A Bicycle For The Whole Family, 1949
200-Year-Old Wooden Bridge In Dagestan, Built Without The Use Of A Single Nail
Bmw Isetta Bubble Car Custom Conversion, 1950s. And, Of Course, A Picnic Basket
Jefferson County Mobile Library, Texas' First Mobile Library
London In The 1920s. A Policeman In A London Street Giving Directions To The Three Children On A Bicycle. The Bicycle Is Specially Made For Three Persons
An Austin 7 Driven By B. Sparrow Loses Control At Donington Park On May 13, 1933
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
1931 The German Schienenzeppelin Hits Max Speed Of 120 Mph (230 Kmh)
Alweg Monorail Train In Cologne, Germany, 1952
A Victorian Home Being Moved Via Horse Power In San Francisco, 1908
An Amazing Capture Of Changing Times In Transportation By Photographer O. Winston Link
Titanic Launch Into Belfast Harbour (1911)
1950s, “Flying Cars” Amusement Park Ride. The Drum Rotated And You Controlled A Brake In The Car. The Cars Would Go Completely Up And Over The Loop
Berlin, Circa 1905
Maintenance Worker Painting The Sydney Harbour Bridge, Australia, 1945
ADVERTISEMENT
A Coca Cola Delivery Van In Oslo In 1938
Boat Ride, 1920s
Chief Iron Tail, Cranking An Early Automobile, 1915
Camp Of Scientists In The Sands Of The Karakum Desert. Turkmen Ssr, 1953
Traditional Cod Fishing In Lofoten ( Nordland, Norway) In 1928
My restoration and digital hand colorization of Anders Beer Wilse´s
photo in the Norsk Folkemuseum archive.
ADVERTISEMENT
Food Delivery In The Future
Car Seats Were Not Equipped With Any Straps To Keep Baby Seat On The Seat. Instead, These Seats Depended On The Mother Extending Her Arm To Prevent The Baby From Toppling Forward. 1958
New York, USA - 1960: French Cellist Maurice Baquet Trying To Open His Car Covered With Snow During A Snow Storm
Cycle Engineer Riding The World’s Smallest Bicycle Through The City, London, August 1937
A Sleeping Berth On An Imperial Airways Aircraft In 1937
1920s Passengers Waiting For A Thrill Of A Lifetime!
A Match Day, 90 Years Ago. Tram In The Barça Field Along Carrer Anglesola (1933)
People Waiting For The Bus. Paris 1958
ADVERTISEMENT
A Train Passes Through Densely Packed Housing Along Kensal Rise, London, England. March 1921
A Photograph Taken Infront Of Rome's Colosseum, Circa 1897
Henry Giulio's Airship, The Yellow, 1903 Old Photos From The 19th Century Give Us A Glimpse Into The Achievements Of The Industrial Revolution
Passengers On Eastern Airlines In 1935
The First Subway Ride In New York City History, 120 Years Ago. Original, 1904
Passengers On Board The Staten Island Ferry In 1895
A Woman Passenger Reads A Magazine On Board A Boeing Airliner, Circa 1955 Advertising
ADVERTISEMENT
Salvador Héctor Sarida, Little 6-Year-Old Motorcyclist. Buenos Aires, 1936
A Family Getting Ready To Cruise In Their 1903 Cadillac Model A Tonneau
New York Central “Mercury” 1936
Man Standing On Lap Of Colossal Figure Of Ramses, 1856
1946 Hey Mister, I Can Fix That Tire For A Coke,a Cap Gun,five Army Men And A Hula Hoop
Munich, Germany, May 1949 Of A Man And His Two Boys Riding On Their Daily Commute
Native Americans In 1908
Azafatas (Stewardess) De Avión, 1940s
ADVERTISEMENT
Georges Tairraz II ( 1900 - 1975 ). Two Climbers Traversing The Aiguille Du Midi And Aiguille Du Plan, Chamonix, France 1932
A Train Driver At Euston Station In London Talks To Two Young Girls On The Platform. April 1936
New York 1918 Hotel Astor Automobile Salon
1949 Nash Airflyte. First Sleeper Car
Titanic Compared To A Modern Cruise Ship
The 1938 Brazilian National Team Training On The Ship. Players Were Thin Compared To Today
Firefighters Trying To Stop Fire At The Equitable Life Building During A Snowstorm, Manhattan, 1912
1951 Airline Ad By Harold Anderson
ADVERTISEMENT
Legless Woman Poses On A Motorcycle At The Wall Of Death Motordrome C1940s
Women Fishing In A Dock, 1908. Toronto
Return By Bus. Buenos Aires 1942
1899 Vintage Bicycle Built For Two
Old Train. 1940s
Times Square, New York City 1936
Interior Of Lockheed L-1049 Super Constellation
Daytona Beach In 1904
ADVERTISEMENT
Subway Car In Manhattan In The 1950s
Picnic, 1954 750 Renault
1929 - Mulholland Dam Reinforced With Tons Of Dirt Shortly After The St. Francis Dam Disaster
1910, A Day At The Beach
The Empire State Building's Top Was Initially Planned To Be A Docking Station For Airships In The Late 1920s
The plan was for airships to land at the top, secure quickly, and let passengers walk into the building's top floor. Then, they could take an elevator down to Manhattan, arriving within seven minutes of landing. A docking mast was even built on the building.
However, engineers couldn't figure out how to safely dock an airship on a 1,250-foot building with strong winds. Airship companies considered the idea too risky, and interest waned. Still, a private blimp did dock for three minutes in September 1931, causing traffic jams below, but no unloading occurred.
The era of cross-Atlantic airships ended with the 1937 Hindenburg disaster, when the world's largest airship caught fire while landing in New Jersey.
ADVERTISEMENT
John Cobb Set A New World Land Speed Record Of 353.30 Mph On The 15th September 1938 In The Railton Mobil Special, Becoming The First Driver To Exceed 350mph
With the huge powers thus available, the limitation was in finding a transmission and tyres that could cope. Reid Railton found a simple and ingenious solution to this by simply splitting the drive from each engine to a separate axle, giving four wheel drive.
The vehicle weighed over 3 tonnes and was 28 ft 8 in (8.74 m) long, 8 ft (2.4 m) wide and 4 ft 3 in (1.30 m) high. The front wheels were 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) apart and the rear 3 ft 6 in (1.07 m). The National Physical Laboratory's wind tunnel was used for testing models of the body
On 16 September 1947, the wind had picked up considerably and the course was still less than ideal, but the car was ready. Cobb decided to make a record attempt.
Setting off to the south, Cobb shifted into second gear at around 120 mph (193 km/h) and hit third at around 250 mph (402 km/h). The Railton shot through the measured mile (1.6 km) at 385.645 mph (620.635 km/h).
The tires were changed and fluids refilled. On the run north, Cobb covered the mile (1.6 km) at 403.136 mph (648.785 km/h). The two-way average of the runs was a new LSR at 394.197 mph (634.399 km/h).
And so it was that a 47-year-old man in a 10-year-old car with 20-year-old engines established a new Land Speed Record
ADVERTISEMENT
Brooklyn Bridge, New York. Then vs. Now
Golden Gate Bridge Painter Walking To Work
Passenger Aboard An American Airliner Enroute From Washington To Los Angeles. Photograph By John Collier In 1941
Queensboro Bridge (Aka 59th Street Bridge) Under Construction In 1905
A Barge Maneuvering Under The Michigan Ave Bridge, Chicago In 1953
1920s – The Mulholland Dam Before The Hollywood Reservoir Was Filled, With The Hollywoodland Sign Visible In The Background
Frozen Niagara Falls, 1911
Delta Gamma Girls Singing In A Bus Which Is Taking Them Through The Snow And Mud To The Talent Show. North Dakota, May 1950
ADVERTISEMENT
Five Female Journalists Smile As They Walk On The Airport Runway To Board A Vacation Flight After Winning The Annual 'Prettiest Newspaperwoman' Contest
New York City After A Snowstorm In 1888
Los Angeles, Bus And Two Women. 1955. By Vivian Maier
Palm Beach Airport, 1955
A Great Look At An Officer With His Indian Motorcycle In 1924, Washington D.c
1939 Packard 8 Door
The Greyhound Bus Company Might Have Been Founded In 1914, But It Didn't Adopt The Greyhound Name Until 1929
Dunkin Donuts In The 1950s
ADVERTISEMENT