A few times a year I come across this photo on social media. Without fail, the caption is something along the lines of “Average American family, Detroit, Michigan, 1954. All this on a Ford factory worker’s wages!” Comments inevitably discuss how things used to be better in America. How you used to be able to buy a nice house on a single blue-collar salary and never want for anything. Let’s set the record straight.
First, the mysterious origin of said photo. Where is this photo from? Is it even from Detroit? Is the man in it a factory worker? After a cursory Google image search, this photo appears all over the place, but not with a definitive source. I first saw it before the AI explosion, so I buy it’s a real photo. Whether it’s a photo of a family that owns this house, and what the parents do for a living, is not known. One of my enduring frustrations is the myth that no woman in America ever held a job before circa 1982. That’s just not true. Most women didn’t work in the 1950s, but about a third did. That isn’t as common as today, but one in three is far from zero. The mother in this photo could have had a job, and if she did it wouldn’t be noteworthy. But fine. Let’s say this is an honest representation of what life was like in the 1950s. That a factory worker at Ford could afford a mortgage for this house, that car, and to raise two children.
You would not take that life it was offered to you.
First, it’s disingenuous to not account for the time period. Seventy years ago the labor market was far different than today. About 40 percent of Americans lived in rural areas. Few attended college. Working a blue-collar job for a reputable company was an above-average outcome. Working full-time for Ford in the 1950s was a very good job. Was it the highest-paying job? No. But it was a good job, certainly better than the norm. It was probably on par with working for a good company in a position that requires a bachelor’s degree today. Say a job in pharmaceutical sales or the insurance industry. Not quite a job in tech, but still one that’s going to result in middle-class prosperity.
Someone working an equivalent job today could live that lifestyle today, even on one income. Take a look at that house. It’s tiny! It looks to be under 1000 square feet. One story, likely with two bedrooms, one bathroom, a tiny kitchen, and a small family room. That’s it. There isn’t a garage. Although the lack of new “starter homes” is a problem, houses that size still exist. Families do not want them. In today’s America, there is a nearly sacrosanct belief that children of a certain age must have their own bedroom. A family of four today would not jump at the chance to move into that home.
Besides the house, a family back in the 1950s only had one car. That car was far from reliable and was not going to get anywhere close to 100,000 miles before falling apart. Sure, one parent might not have to work and could stay at home with the children. Does that sound better? The thought of being home all day with several children, and without a car, doesn’t sound all that appealing to me. Throw in the lack of a dishwasher, washing machine, or most other labor-saving devices, and being a stay-at-home parent was tough work in mid-century America. I’ll take my nine-to-five.
Besides the car, this family also had to forgo a lot of luxuries that 21st century Americans take for granted. They would have only had one TV, and that TV would have gotten fewer than 10 channels. That is, 10 channels when it worked at all. Their refrigerator would have been a major investment relative to their income. And it would have been a fraction of the size of the behemoths that fill out kitchens today. On top of that, where do you think this family went on vacation? They almost certainly stayed in the Midwest, and probably in Michigan. Maybe a trip to Florida every couple of years. Other than Canada, they never went abroad.
This blog often reflects on problems that need to be solved, such as parking minimums. I often discuss high housing prices, which I view as the greatest domestic problem facing America, as well as most of the developed world, today. Necessarily, focusing on problems that need to be fixed can also come across as overly negative.
It’s also important to recognize positive change. The world of the 1950s was one of progress. The urban middle class went from being one segment of American life to the dominant one. Wages were going up, literacy increasing. It was a time of hope and optimism. At the same time, life has gotten far better since then. Consider a family of four that lives in a two-bedroom house, has one unreliable car, and takes a week-long vacation every year to Lake Erie. Is that a bad life? Of course not. Nor is it an enviable one. That life is readily available for many Americans. That very house in Detroit would probably cost under $100,000 today.
Today’s typical American lives a far better life. Yes, those who have not yet bought a house are facing real headwinds. Yes, many families have two working parents. That said, the gains since then are obvious. Roughly the same percentage of families own homes. Now, however, they can afford more of everything else. More nights eating out. More than one car. Vacations around the world. Free refills. A life expectancy a decade longer.
Life has improved. Let’s recognize it.