Crazy driving in 1939!

[Forgotten Man]

So many times we feel that the golden years of the 20s to the 40s had something special in the way American driving... well, we come to this common thought that not everyone had a car in those days, now; this is true to a point. Not everyone had a car but most did. Most families didn't have as many cars then as we have today, maybe two cars tops depending on the house hold.

Now, I would like to share this clip to illustrate just how crazy some intersections could be of that era!

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We see in this clip some very interesting driving habits, left turns from the right lane, people just walking in front of cars... cars just going where they want to go... it's a balanced mess of nonsense!

Check out this one:

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Make sure your sound is on, there is good music set to these clips... Not only is it an example of golden era driving techniques (or the lack there of) but a look into daily streets of 1939 Oregon.

 

[Fletch]

Fantastic! Now what accounts for the existence of such films? Was Portland - a very conservative place in the 30s - forward-looking enough to be doing scientific traffic studies?

This was a watershed moment in auto safety. We as yet had no driver ed requirement (sometimes not even a test) for licenses. Yet cars were getting numerous - and fast - enough on the roads that the old ways weren't safe any more.

GM sponsored one of the first safe driving films, We Drivers, in 1936. In 1937, laminated safety glass windshields became mandatory (altho Ford at least had been using them since the 20s). The all-steel body, starting with Plymouth in 1930, was becoming more common by mid-decade. And of course, the limited-access, on-off ramp, multi-lane highway was cropping up in the NYC and SoCal environs.

Looking at Sandy Blvd in 1939 it seems people are stuck in habits carried over from the days of slow speed, low volume traffic. (One assumes most folk who could afford a car then were older, and had been driving at least since the 20s.) The car weaving around the motorcyclist caused me to draw a sharp breath. The type of lane painting suggests it was still a new idea. And ONE flashing signal for a 4-lane intersection? Can you imagine such a thing today?

 

[Guttersnipe]

Second clip @ 0:22

A black sedan make left turn from the right lane - against oncoming traffic!

 

[Forgotten Man]

Now, maybe these clips were filmed to show what happens when the traffic lights don't work proper? I know some times the lights will blink yellow or red sometimes here when things aren't working correctly. Maybe that's where the term "On the blink" came from?

You can see how many aren't driving very fast, which makes it easy for quick stops if needed... and it seems like it was needed!

The thing I really enjoy on these films is the different cars we see; in one of the others you'll see a sedan pulling a flat trailer with what appears to be a cast iron wood burning range! lol Also, the different little delivery trucks running around and the street cars in the background just are so neat to see.

 

[Forgotten Man]

A black sedan make left turn from the right lane - against oncoming traffic!

I KNOW!!! lol

 

[Mr. 'H']

I love this footage.

Especially that it's in color!

 

[Mr. 'H']

A black sedan make left turn from the right lane - against oncoming traffic!

Looks worse because the footage is slightly speeded up.

 

[Bruce Wayne]

Fantastic! Now what accounts for the existence of such films? Was Portland - a very conservative place in the 30s - forward-looking enough to be doing scientific traffic studies?

This was a watershed moment in auto safety. We as yet had no driver ed requirement (sometimes not even a test) for licenses. Yet cars were getting numerous - and fast - enough on the roads that the old ways weren't safe any more.

GM sponsored one of the first safe driving films, We Drivers, in 1936. In 1937, laminated safety glass windshields became mandatory (altho Ford at least had been using them since the 20s). The all-steel body, starting with Plymouth in 1930, was becoming more common by mid-decade. And of course, the limited-access, on-off ramp, multi-lane highway was cropping up in the NYC and SoCal environs.

Looking at Sandy Blvd in 1939 it seems people are stuck in habits carried over from the days of slow speed, low volume traffic. (One assumes most folk who could afford a car then were older, and had been driving at least since the 20s.) The car weaving around the motorcyclist caused me to draw a sharp breath. The type of lane painting suggests it was still a new idea. And ONE flashing signal for a 4-lane intersection? Can you imagine such a thing today?

Don't forget no collapsable steering columns. Drivers would be impaled in a bad enough accident.

 

[Forgotten Man]

Don't forget no collapsable steering columns. Drivers would be impaled in a bad enough accident.

Could have happened but the wheel mostly would prevent that from happening. Have seen my share of car crashes of that era, seen some nasty ones, but never a person impaled by a steering column.

 

[ScionPI2005]

Those are amazing. Very entertaining. I guess that shows how dangerous a newer technology can be.

Now I need to see if I can find the names of the soundtracks in these videos.

 

[Forgotten Man]

Well, not sure that it illustrates how dangerous a new thing can be; after all, the automobile had been around close to 40 years by this time, just shows how people will behave when there are no operational traffic signals or direction, kind of no holds bar in this case. I've seen stuff like this before when traffic lights are down and all sides blink red... crazy things will happen. Notice how no one really is speeding, they’re just kind of going when they can and some chances are taken but, no one is hurt. I wish those Kodak or Keystone movie cameras had sound, I’m sure there was quite a bit of honking going on!

The first clip features Benny Goodman's sextet playing Rose Room.

The second clip finishes a song I can't recall the name of; I'll dig it up for you and shoot you a PM when I find out. The song after that is Harry James "theme" Ciribiribin.

 

["Skeet" McD]

Fantastic! Now what accounts for the existence of such films? Was Portland - a very conservative place in the 30s - forward-looking enough to be doing scientific traffic studies?....The type of lane painting suggests it was still a new idea. And ONE flashing signal for a 4-lane intersection? Can you imagine such a thing today?

What a WONDERFUL document! And I don't even drive...I guess you know you're really around the bend when you can get excited about watching traffic.

As usual, I think our friend Fletch has his finger on the right places. Motion study, if you will, was already an established, and trendy, operation...and "motion study" of traffic seems to be the best explanation for these films. I wonder if we will have a certain answer from someone in Oregon.

Regarding the line painting....in at least one of the scenes, there are pedestrian crosswalks shown: the same pattern runs down the middle of the street. I'm thinking this was to demarcate "safe territory" for those brave pedestrians who made it through the chaos of traffic going one way--before they ventured on in the last push to the other side. To tell you the truth, as a pedestrian in the early 21st C....I wouldn't mind a return to this plan, if that's what's going on!

"Skeet"

 

[Forgotten Man]

Then traffic was enjoyable to watch, the cars were much better looking and people much better dressed!

Bless those with 8 to 16 mm cameras to have taken this footage for us 70 years into the future to enjoy.

A real window into the past.

 

[ron521]

Also interesting to note the age distribution of the cars, the majority are not more than 10 years old ("streamlined" bodies, many with headlights in the fenders), but still enough of the older cars from the mid-late 20's (mostly rectangular bodies with slightly rounded corners, headlights separate from the fenders) to notice, and a few "square as a box" sedans and trucks from the early 20's or before rolling on their very skinny tires.

 

[Fletch]

Cars typically were subject to some sort of safety inspection. Drivers often were not.

 

[Forgotten Man]

Yep, there was a mix of different ages on the roads in 1939... Which really doesn't surprise me seeing today I still see many 70s and 80s cars around wile they're pushing 20-30 years old. To see a late 20s car in 1939 was very common! Not everyone could afford a new "streamlined" car!

 

[dhermann1]

Something to remember: As much as we kvetch these days about car quality, in those days a car's life expectancy was less than half what it is now. In those days few cars reached 100k miles, now there are many out there with over 200K. So I'd say the average age of those carts was under 6 years.

 

[Forgotten Man]

Something to remember: As much as we kvetch these days about car quality, in those days a car's life expectancy was less than half what it is now. In those days few cars reached 100k miles, now there are many out there with over 200K. So I'd say the average age of those carts was under 6 years.

lol lol lol

Well, I guess I should donate my '46 Plymouth to the Smithsonian; I've got well over 100,000. Miles on that crate! And it's still driving! And I know of a '48 Plymouth that's got over 600,000. Miles on it! Who really knows how many miles are on mine though, that thing could have rolled over a few times before I bought it! Darn thing originally drove from Detroit to CA some time in the 50s!

Now, take into consideration, this film was taken in 1939. The earliest cars I see are from the very early 30s or late 20s. They still drove because cars then were re-buildable! And there were plenty of scrap yards kids or people of little means could get parts at.

Originally they weren't designed to last this long, but they did because they made most things to last by nature.

 

[Guttersnipe]

Yeah, I have to agree on with Forgottenman on this one. With proper maintenance, protection from damp, and engine rebuilds, those old cars could run like champs for decades.

The typical post-war life cycle of a car was this:
Sold new and driven for 50K and traded-in/sold to fund a new model. Then overhauled and driven by the new owner or re-sold by the dealership.

Case in point, my '54:
The original owner rebuilt the motor at 50K and when it "turned over" again at 100K and drove until 150K at which point he sold it. The guy he sold it to rebuilt the motor, "hopped it up" and put another 24K on it, at which point I bought the car, swapped it for a V8 and sold the motor - which is still running strong and currently powers a hot rod '41 Chevy coupe that is on the "rockabilly" car show circuit and is NEVER trailered!

Something to remember: As much as we kvetch these days about car quality, in those days a car's life expectancy was less than half what it is now. In those days few cars reached 100k miles, now there are many out there with over 200K. So I'd say the average age of those carts was under 6 years.

 

[Tony in Tarzana]

Back then also, things were designed to be rebuildable. You didn't get a new starter or a new generator or even a new voltage regulator, you had yours rebuilt.

Nowadays, if a car's engine needs to be rebuilt, the car is generally ready for the junkyard.