15 Old Photos Where the Safety Standards Were Basically “Good Luck”
Modern safety rules can feel excessive right up until you look at how people used to work without them. Steelworkers balanced hundreds of feet above city streets, linemen climbed poles with little between them and the ground, and early stunt performers treated the outside of a moving airplane like extra seating. Even ordinary jobs could involve heights, exposed machinery, or equipment that would trigger an impressive number of workplace forms today. The people in these photos often look completely relaxed, which somehow makes everything worse. A hard hat would be nice. A harness would be even nicer. Here are 15 old photos from an era when the safety plan frequently seems to have been “try not to fall”.
Lunch Came With an 800-Foot Drop
The famous 1932 Lunch Atop a Skyscraper photo shows 11 workers casually eating on a steel beam high above Manhattan, with no visible harnesses interrupting the view.
Chrysler Workers Treated Beams Like Sidewalks
Construction workers captured on the Chrysler Building in 1929 moved across exposed steel high above Manhattan with remarkably little separating a normal workday from a very long fall.
Telephone Repair Came With a Pole-Climbing Requirement
A 1939 telephone lineman works high on a utility pole with the kind of minimal setup that makes modern bucket trucks suddenly feel like an excellent invention.
Window Cleaning Was Not for Anyone Afraid of Heights
An older New York window cleaner works outside a high-rise overlooking Central Park, suspended above the city while doing a job most people would prefer firmly at ground level.
This Cannery Had an 11-Year-Old Employee
A 1911 photograph shows 11-year-old Fulsom McCutcheon working around machinery inside a sardine factory, a job description that would trigger a spectacular number of rules today.
Walking on the Wing Was Apparently Entertainment
Around 1919 or 1920, barnstormer Ormer Locklear performed stunts while standing on the wing of a moving airplane.
He Brought a Camera Onto the Wing
In 1921, “Jersey” Ringel stood on an airplane wing during flight with a camera in hand.
Apparently This Beam Satisfactory
Construction workers in Missouri high above the ground in 1928, looking surprisingly comfortable.
The Motorcycle Gear Was Basically Regular Clothes
A vintage motorcycle photo shows just how casual early riding could look.
Early Airplane Workshops Were Mostly Moving Parts
A 1916 aircraft workshop photograph shows a mechanic surrounded by large propellers and exposed machinery.
Apparently These Were Work Shoes
A 1931 worker balances high on a steel beam with no visible harness and footwear that looks far less protective than anything expected on a modern construction site.
Even the Kids Were Working the Machines
Lewis Hine photographed a young spinner inside a South Carolina cotton mill in 1908, surrounded by industrial machinery at an age when modern workplaces would not let her near it.
Olive Picking Required a Very Optimistic Ladder
Around 1900, a California orchard worker climbed high into an olive tree on a long ladder with little visible protection beyond staying very, very balanced.
Even Fire Drills Looked Questionable
Workers at Thomas Edison’s West Orange laboratory climbed a tall exterior ladder during a fire drill around 1912.