20 rare archival photos proving that life in America of the 50s was completely different

The 1950s is often called the golden era in US history, a time of happiness and prosperity, despite the threat of nuclear annihilation, racial segregation, and the impending Cold War.

Those years, as a rule, reach us in black and white photographs. Color photography was still a relative novelty at that time, and filming was a pretty expensive pleasure for ordinary people. Nevertheless, our today's selection consists of color photos, which means that the middle of the last century is getting closer and clearer to us than ever.

Many of these pictures were collected by Denis Fraevich, a New Yorker of Russian descent, who loves to return to that era. He works as a Russian-speaking guide in New York. "Photos were found at auctions, flea markets and garage sales, digitized and posted on the Internet."- says Fraevich. “Someone’s happy life, someone’s dreams, important events, holidays and travels were for some reason thrown into the trash and went for a penny at a sale in the neighborhood. Seeing this is incredibly sad, but thanks to the enthusiasts who buy and digitize old slides, we can lift the curtain of time and look at this era through the eyes of ordinary Americans. "

Finding photographs is Denis's hobby, he is fascinated by American things, culture and loves the history of the country, its abandoned places and, as you will see in many photos, classic American cars. "I am amazed at how often the car is in the frame. Obviously, he took a much more important position in the life of an American than in our time. Today it is much less likely that someone will take a picture of their car or TV.".