How it Works1 min ago
Litter - A Century Ago
56 Answers
I've been looking at a lot of old photos of city scenes in the early 1900s and the streets do seem to be very clean and litter free.
Is this because people were better behaved or simply because there was a lot less stuff to litter with? Pop came in bottles and were returned for the penny. There were no cardboard coffee cups, pizza boxes, burger boxes - I don't think people ate and drank on the go as they do now. There would have been chips wrapped in newspaper but were these more likely to be eaten at home, the used paper thrown on the fire?
No plastic bags. There was certainly smoking paraphernalia but the cigarette packets didn't have that nasty plasticky coating nor the plastic film. No chewing gum before WWII.
There would have been lots of horse muck but neighbours with gardens would almost fight over it - so good for the roses. I do remember in the 60s and 70s seeing LOTS of dog mess - usually white. :)
There seemed to be a lot of braziers on the streets and pavements even when I was a child, so maybe people chucked their rubbish on to them.
Back to my question - were people better behaved then, or was there a lot less stuff to litter with?
Is this because people were better behaved or simply because there was a lot less stuff to litter with? Pop came in bottles and were returned for the penny. There were no cardboard coffee cups, pizza boxes, burger boxes - I don't think people ate and drank on the go as they do now. There would have been chips wrapped in newspaper but were these more likely to be eaten at home, the used paper thrown on the fire?
No plastic bags. There was certainly smoking paraphernalia but the cigarette packets didn't have that nasty plasticky coating nor the plastic film. No chewing gum before WWII.
There would have been lots of horse muck but neighbours with gardens would almost fight over it - so good for the roses. I do remember in the 60s and 70s seeing LOTS of dog mess - usually white. :)
There seemed to be a lot of braziers on the streets and pavements even when I was a child, so maybe people chucked their rubbish on to them.
Back to my question - were people better behaved then, or was there a lot less stuff to litter with?
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It's funny how you gauge time as you get older. Whenever I read something concerning a century ago I immediately think of the 1800s; but, hold on, a century ago was 1919...Wow! Yes, of course there wasn't as much garbage, and I guess most of the reasons for that have already been mentioned in the thread. I remember as a kid scouring the gutters, along with my delinquent friends, for cigarette butts!
I live just a 7/8. I Utd walk from a Lidl and then a local parade of shops. Just that small walk and the amount of litter on the floor is horrendous. Crisp packets, takeaway boxes, cigarettes...... and it often blows onto my driveway. So I clear it all up, plus anything on the pavement outside my house. I cannot comprehend people simply dropping their rubbish onto the floor, I really can’t.
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