LIFE IN AUSTRALIA IN THE 50’s

Life in the 50s was, in many ways, a pleasant time. It felt safe. Roles were clear, which meant there was less confusion and far fewer arguments about who did what. There were very few labour-saving devices, yet life felt free in other ways.

Children, especially, had a lot of freedom. It was perfectly acceptable to roam far from home because it was considered safe to do so. After school and on weekends, neighbourhood kids gathered and disappeared for hours. We climbed trees and monkey bars, swam with jellyfish, and scoured the local tip for discarded treasures. I got my first pushbike there. We did anything that felt exciting, without constant supervision or safety rules, and came home only when it was time for dinner.

If we got hurt, we got over it. A bad cut might get a stitch, scraped knees got iodine, maybe a bandage, and then we were straight back outside. Considering the things we got up to, serious accidents were rare. In all my young years, I remember only one death. My nine-year-old cousin drowned while collecting golf balls in a stormwater culvert, when the main water was released to clear a buildup. It made the full front page of every Sunday newspaper in Sydney. That alone shows how uncommon such events were. Many kids spent time walking along culverts. In our neighbourhood, it was a great shortcut to the tip. We never went down there again, and our parents never even knew we had.

Most people had no television, and certainly no mobile phones. Some had a radio. Some had a car, and if you were lucky, it had a lit traffic indicator. Meals were basic but adequate. Clothes were often handmade, and school clothes were usually hand-me-downs. People owned one good outfit for special occasions. There was no money, and often no option, to buy unnecessary or frivolous things.

Food was commonly grown at home to save money, not for the reasons we talk about today. Chemical additives were rare. Tea and coffee were made at home. Eating out was a luxury and little choice. Canned food usually meant food you had grown yourself and bottled in your own kitchen. Ice chests stored perishable food Products were made in Australia. They were expensive and often bought on lay-by, a system of paying things off over time without interest.

Schooling was free, and college was inexpensive. Insurance was reasonably priced. Most households had one dial phone and one radio, and if you were very lucky, a car. Later came a television, a washing machine, and a fridge. That was it. That was the household technology.

If you think about it, if today you removed all the computer chips from everything from cars to refrigerators, brewed your own coffee, cooked your own meals, hung clothes out to dry, owned one television, had no air conditioning, didn’t replace things just because they were outdated, didn’t pay for endless subscriptions, and were happy in a small house with one bathroom, one car, and a few toys, you would be partly back in the 50s.

Love,

Sandy Stevenson

8.2.26