Last Updated on June 7, 2025 by Matt Staff
By the late 1950s, America was in full swing with its jukebox riffs, Sputnik shockwaves, and the overriding pastel-colored promise of suburban living. This collection of 25 vintage photos can fully capture the pulse of a decade that hurtled onward toward both moonshots and Motown.
1. Someone’s third grade class, circa 1958
2. Six emotions captured in one Kodachrome
3. 1958, NYC street scene
4. View from underneath the Brooklyn Bridge, 1958
5. Marion, Indiana, 1958
6. The beach at Positano on the Amalfi Coast, 1958
7. Los Angeles traffic in 1959
8. Cowgirl, High River, Alberta, Canada, 1959
9. Children playing in the street, USA, 1958
10. Tokyo, 1959
11. Ladies in a 1959 kitchen
12. Residents of a small fishing village in Japan in 1959
13. Brooklyn, 1958
14. A bridal shower in 1959
15. Standing in line, 1958
16. Las Vegas, 1959
17. A 1959 J.C. Penny store
18. Nolan Hurst at a 7-11 in Hurst, Texas, 1959
19. Sleeping Bear Dunes in Michigan in 1959
20. 1959, sorting out Christmas mail
21. A man at an oasis in Libya in 1959
22. A solid fire department moment back in 1959
23. Dancers in Big Sur, California, 1959
24. Leaving town in Hammond, Indiana, 1959
25. Fremont Street, Nevada, circa 1959
Explore more vintage content:
From chrome-laden diners to the glow of freshly lit neon, these snapshots capture a decade bidding farewell to its own brand of cool. Spin the jukebox back a few tracks with 35 Vintage Photos of the Mid-1950s, to see where the style (and the tailfins) first took off. Then, check out 35 Vintage Photos Of The Early 1950s.
