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Beat the Heat: Vintage Photos of Folks Keeping Cool
There’s nothing quite like a scorching heatwave to make us appreciate the power of Mother Nature (and the invention of air conditioning!). These vintage photos offer a glimpse into how people coped with oppressive summer temperatures in the days before widespread AC. From simple pleasures like licking ice blocks to ingenious solutions like “street showers,” these images capture the timeless struggle to stay cool.
- Waiting for Free Ice: New York City residents line up for precious ice during a heatwave in 1900.
- Ice Cold Treat: Children find relief from the 1911 heat by licking giant blocks of ice.
- A Dip in the Thames: Boys escape the 1933 London heatwave with a refreshing dive into the Thames River.
- Liverpool Life: A snapshot of everyday life in Toxteth, Liverpool, during the 1975 heatwave.
- Buckling Under the Heat: The pavement bursts open in North St. Louis under the intense 115-degree heat of 1954.
- Londoners Keeping Cool: Residents find creative ways to beat the heat in London, 1930.
- New York City Swelters: A look at how New Yorkers handled the 1953 heatwave.
- Street Shower: Residents improvise a “street shower” to cool off in Washington, D.C., during the 1925 heatwave.
- Ice Cream Craze: A man stocks up on ice cream cones during a 1946 heatwave in Sydney, Australia.
- Central Park Respite: Finding a shady spot to read in Central Park during a September heatwave in 1961.
- Cooling Off in NYC: Four boys find relief from the 95-degree weather in NYC, 1939.
- Hollywood Heat: Cybill Shepherd and Martin Scorsese on the set of “Taxi Driver” during a 1975 heatwave.
- Fans and Block Parties: New Yorkers bring out the fans for a block party during the 1977 heatwave.
- Keeping Cool on the Job: An ingenious (and slightly precarious) way to stay cool while working in extreme heat.
- Frying an Egg: A classic heatwave demonstration: frying an egg on a roof in Stockholm, Sweden, during the 1955 heatwave.