What did car seats used to be like for kids?

[Minnie824]

I mean, like 60 years ago. Even when I was around 5 yrs old, I remember sitting on the floor of the backseat of the car, or riding in the back part of the station wagon, with my pillow and surrounded by suitcases. Theres so many rules now (which is good to keep kids safe) for car seats, etc, but what did there used to be? Anyone have pictures of old strollers carseats? I don't really have any reason for asking, other than curiousity. Just funny how much has changed.

 

[Cruisin]

I'm not old enough to know what they looked like 60 years ago but in the late 1950's my mom said she had a car "seat" for us kids.

It was basically a canvas style seat with big U shaped hooks that went over the back of the front seat and that was it. Put the toddler in and go.

I know they used a lot of car bassinets or baskets back then too to put babies in.

 

[Nancy]

My sister turns 36 this year, when she was a baby she was held by my Mom in the front seat. As she got older we had the "seat" that hooked over the front that had a plastic steering wheel on it...or she just got held by someone. I know when she was about 1 years old, we drove to Florida in the station wagon. The whole back was basically used for us to lay down in and I remember sitting back there with her. ( I was about 13 at the time)

Seats have even changed drastically since my kids were babies and mine are 13, 16 and almost 18.

 

[SunFloridaDisney]

we had the "seat" that hooked over the front that had a plastic steering wheel on it.

We had one of those when I was a kid also. I remember my youngest sister in one of those, this would have been the early 60's. I don't think the push for really SAFE baby seats started until the 70's. Even then, they were way different from what we have now.

 

[BunsenH]

The early 60's version of the air bag was my mothers arm. It would shoot out as soon as the brake was touched and prevented my head from hitting the bare metal dashboard.

 

[SC Minnie]

It was basically a canvas style seat with big U shaped hooks that went over the back of the front seat and that was it. Put the toddler in and go. .

That's what my mom had but it was plastic. But once we were toddlers we didn't use anything. I remember sitting on my mothers lap when I was about 5 and she let me steer the car DD is almost 12 and still rides in the back seat.

With all the safety things today I am amazed that anyone born before 1980 made it to adulthood.

 

[buddy&wooz]

When I was a kid (mid 60s) we had very thin hard plastic seat for my brother, similar to those infant seats they sell now (not the car seats, the kind you can prop the baby up in at home.) I remember my mom was able to take the seat and place it in a shopping cart.

When I was a toddler & preschooler (yes I actually remember!) I was held in by a thin harness made of strapping, that was latch-hooked to the seatbelt. Unless, of course, we were in my grandfather's car, which didn't have seatbelts. It was strapped over me like a vest, with a long tether- I could sit, stand, play on the floor... but I guess I wouldn't go flying out if we wrecked.

It's a wonder we survived!

 

[SC Minnie]

The early 60's version of the air bag was my mothers arm. It would shoot out as soon as the brake was touched and prevented my head from hitting the bare metal dashboard.

She would throw the arm so fast and hard you would end up with a bruised chest!!! My mom still instinctively does that when she steps on the brakes.

 

[luvdzne]

The early 60's version of the air bag was my mothers arm. It would shoot out as soon as the brake was touched and prevented my head from hitting the bare metal dashboard.

Yep, I remember my dad doing that all the time and I am a 70's child. If we were in the back seat when he hit the breaks we were SOL, I hit the back of the front seat many times. I remember my parents holding my younger sister in the car, and my brother and I riding in the back of the station wagon.

 

[Cindy's Mom]

In the early 60's my mom and dad never had car seats for me and DB's. Mom would hold the youngest and that was that. the best was sitting on the armrest in front with your parents (how safe was that?)

 

[Microcell]

When I was pregnant with my DD in 1998 my father and stepmother brought me a car seat. My stepmother who never had children said "You can use this to take the baby home from the hospital." My father, who's last baby was born in 1976 said "Oh, no, the baby will be too small for that, she is going to carry the baby in her lap!"

He wa sso surprised to find out the law dicataes you have to have a car seat to take home the baby now!

 

[ragdoll]

I'm 53 and I remember riding on my mother's lap. There weren't even seat belts for adults back then. One time I was wondering what the shiny handle on the door was for and decided to find out. I pulled on it and the door opened while the car was going. Good thing DM wasn't leaning on the door. She always remembered to lock the door after that!

 

[BriarfoxinWA]

I'll be 40 this summer and I can't even remember having any kind of car seats around until the mid 80's. When I was little I just jumped around in the back seat, sat on the floor, or slept on the seat. I can remember taking a 4 hour car trip with one of my friends when I was about 12 or so. Her dad had this big panel van that had large windows down both sides. He put two saw horses and a piece plywood on top in the back to form a platform. We put cushions and pillows on top and rode all the way to St. Louis like that. Right at window level - it was great. It's a wonder we survived that trip. If we had been in an accident we would have been smeared all over the highway.

My DS was born in 1990 and we had this little phony bassinet type infant car seat...that we put in the front seat... technology has come a long way since then.

 

[mickman1962]

I used to lay down in the back window.

 

[Fire14]

How funny this came up a coworker and I were just talking about this.

I'm a child of 70's and i remember a car bed that trook up most of bench back seat. The first car seat I remember was for my youngest bro who was born in 1981 and him not fitting in it right since he was a premie.

 

[GeorgeG]

When I was a little boy my parents had a Nash Coupe that had two small seats that hinged down out of the wall to the trunk. Each one had a single hinged post that served as the front leg. They were probably no larger than one foot square and not really padded. Whenever a third small child was with us, a wooden shoe shine box (I still have it) became the third seat. A fourth would sit on an upside down pot that also had another use...

When my own kids were small, the car seats were flat, slightly padded seats that hooked over the car seat back and had a tubular metal frame and a web strap as well as the aforementioned plastic steering wheel with a little horn in the middle.

Now, what's really scary is that I can remember all that and I can't remember what I had for breakfast this morning!

 

[Microcell]

I remember when I finally got tall enough to see out the window. Our kids seem so coddled, they could always see out the window!