Baby boomers lived through a time that feels like an entirely different world today. They roamed free in their neighborhoods, played outside until dark, and even sat down to a jello-heavy meal without blinking an eye. These experiences are now relics of the past.
What younger generations often don’t realize is that boomers didn’t just live through history—they helped shape it. From the birth of music festivals to driving muscle cars, their influence can still be felt in ways we might not fully appreciate.
But with time comes change, and many of the things that were once second nature to boomers have disappeared. Let’s dive into 10 of those experiences that people today might never truly understand.
1. Sears Catalog
Before Amazon and online shopping took over, the Sears Catalog was the go-to for ordering anything you needed. This extensive catalog offered everything from household items to even entire homes, making it a vital resource for many Americans.
Especially useful for those in rural areas and African Americans facing segregation, the Sears Catalog was a lifeline for shopping from home. However, with the rise of big-box stores and the internet, it gradually fell out of use, leaving younger generations with little memory of its once-central role in American life.
2. Milk Men
Milkmen were once a daily fixture in American life, delivering fresh bottles of milk straight to your doorstep. Waking up to find a glass bottle waiting on the stoop was a routine part of mornings in the 40s and 50s, long before grocery stores became the norm for picking up dairy.
Even as late as the early 60s, about 30% of milk was still delivered directly to homes. While the milkman has faded into history, boomers still remember the convenience and charm of this now-extinct service.
3. S&H Green Stamps
S&H Green Stamps are a forgotten piece of history for anyone who isn’t a boomer. These stamps, handed out at supermarkets, gas stations, and department stores, were the precursor to modern-day loyalty programs. Customers collected them and mailed them in for rewards from a catalog, making them a popular incentive in the 1960s.
By that time, S&H Green Stamps were so widespread that they even outpaced the USPS in distribution. But today, they’ve vanished, leaving only memories for boomers who once eagerly collected them for prizes.
4. Two Digit Zip Codes & Weird State Abbreviations
Boomers remember when mailing a letter was a bit more confusing. In the early days, zip codes were just two digits, which led to plenty of mix-ups. With only 99 places to send mail, it was far from today’s system. State abbreviations were also inconsistent, causing even more confusion—like mixing up Arizona with Arkansas.
By 1963, the government introduced the five-digit zip code and standardized state abbreviations to make mail delivery more efficient. Thanks to these changes, letters became much easier to send without the risk of them getting lost or misdirected.
5. USPS Twice a Day
The earliest boomers may recall a time when the USPS delivered mail twice a day. Back then, mail was a critical form of communication, and postal workers were instructed to deliver letters promptly, with businesses even receiving up to four visits a day.
However, as instant communication became more common, the need for frequent mail delivery faded. By 1950, the USPS switched to the once-a-day schedule we know today, as the urgency of getting letters or birthday cards right away had diminished.
6. Calling the Operator
Before cell phones and instant dialing, making a long-distance call was a bit more involved. Boomers remember the days when you had to dial zero and ask a phone operator to connect you to someone outside your local area. It was a hands-on process involving plugs and switches, but eventually, the operator would make the connection.
Direct dialing didn’t become widespread until the late 1950s, so until then, operators were an essential part of staying in touch. It’s hard to imagine now, but boomers grew up in a world where you couldn’t just call anyone, anywhere, with a simple tap.
7. Pop Top Cans
Back when boomers cracked open a soda or a stolen beer, cans didn’t have the convenient push tabs we use today. Instead, they had pop tops—a small ring you’d pull off completely to open the can. It wasn’t unusual to see those little rings discarded everywhere, though littering wasn’t exactly encouraged.
The pop top eventually gave way to the fixed opener we have now, making it easier to recycle and avoid stray pieces of trash. While the design changed, boomers still remember the days when cracking open a can meant pulling a ring and tossing it aside.
8. Slide Rules
Slide rules may sound like something fun to slide down, but for boomers, they were a critical tool for complex math. Long before electronic calculators, these sliding rulers helped people calculate everything from multiplication to trigonometry, making them indispensable for scientists and engineers.
By the mid-1970s, though, the rise of electronic calculators made slide rules obsolete. While they may be a relic today, boomers remember them as an essential part of their education, even if the name doesn’t quite live up to the excitement.
9. Duck and Cover Drills
Boomers grew up with the constant threat of nuclear war, a reality that shaped their school days in unsettling ways. One of the most memorable practices was the duck and cover drill, where kids would dive under their desks and cover their heads during alarms, as if that would protect them from a nuclear blast.
As relations between the U.S. and the USSR slowly improved, people began to see how ineffective and absurd these drills really were. Eventually, they were phased out, but the anxiety they caused left a lasting impact on an entire generation.