The fashion police—no joke!—was on patrol to catch the immodest.
Colonel Sherrell, the superintendent of public buildings and grounds in Washington, D.C., decreed that the skirts of bathing suits be no higher than six inches above the knee. Here in 1922, “Cop” Bill Norton checks to see if women measured up. We can only wonder what the punishment was for falling short: long johns? These vintage Christmas photos will fill you with holiday nostalgia.
The ice man was a welcome sight in the good ol’ summertime.
In the days before refrigeration, a worker (shown, in 1923) in this essential occupation delivered blocks of ice that people put in their iceboxes to keep their food cool. Fans of classic music will get a kick out of these vintage Sinatra photos.
Ice blocks also made for a cool place to perch on a scorching day.
Dorothy Kelly, Virginia Hunter, Elaine Griggs, Hazel Brown, and Mary Kaminsky fight the summer heat at a golf course in Washington, D.C., between 1920 and 1932.
It was OK for kids to go for a dip in public fountains.
A bevy of boys takes the plunge in New York City’s Madison Square Park between 1910 and 1915.