Guess What’s in Our “Boomer Box?”

A Boomer Box Is a Time Capsule of Classic Items from the Baby Boom—Here’s What’s in Ours

If you’d buried a time capsule back in the Baby Boom era of the 1950s, ‘60s and ‘70s, what would be in it? Just for fun, it’s a question we asked ourselves here at Boom Again, a pop culture trivia game featuring questions from the Baby Boom era.

We came up with some doozies—items that definitely define the era. They wouldn’t fit in an ordinary time capsule, so we decided a box for our imaginary time capsule would do the trick. That’s why we call it a Boomer Box.

 

So let’s dig it up

Here are some must-haves for a box that captures the spirit of the Baby Boom:

Glass milk bottle

Back in the day, you didn’t have to run to the store to pick up a carton of milk—which would then be tossed in the trash when empty. A “milkman” delivered glass bottles to your porch, or wherever you put the special box left out just for this purpose.

Bottles were then rinsed and placed back outside for pick-up, where they’d be washed and used again and again.

Polaroid camera

It might seem inconceivable to Millennials, but back in the Baby Boom, people took photos using a camera filled with film that then had to be taken in for processing. You might take a photo and not see it for days, weeks or even months, depending on how long it took you to use up the roll of film.

Then in 1948 along came the Polaroid Camera (though it would be many years before they became a common item in American households). With a Polaroid, you could develop and print a photo directly from the camera and have it within minutes.

Of course, nobody could resist shaking it to hurry things along.

Tickets to Woodstock

It wouldn’t be a Boomer Box without tickets to one of the most iconic music festivals of the era (and perhaps of all time): Woodstock.

Contrary to popular assumption, tickets weren’t free. Advance tickets cost about $18.

Held in Woodstock, NY in 1969, the 3-day festival attracted more than 400,000 people. It featured artists including Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, Santana, Grateful Dead, Sly and the Family Stone, The Who… and even doo-wop group Sha Na Na.

Jello Mold

One of the most beloved treats of the ‘50s and ‘60s was the molded Jello dish. It was easy, fast and a way for cooks to get creative. Sometimes, they’d get a little too creative. In addition to the standard fruit Jello molds, you could be served Jello stuffed with anything from vegetables to shrimp to hot dogs.

Bon Appetit!

Manual Typewriter

Long before the computer keyboard was the manual typewriter. It took a lot more effort to press down on the keys with enough vigor to make it work—and if you didn’t get it right on the first shot, you had to turn out to every typist’s best friend: Wite-Out.

 

8-Track Tape and Player

In our Boomer Box, we had to include the 8-track player in the Boom Box as well as an actual 8-track—otherwise, how would you play it? And without playing it, you don’t experience the nostalgic fun of having the tape interrupt the middle of a song you’re grooving to switch to another track.

Rotary Phone

When you dig out the rotary phone, here’s a fun exercise. Give it to a young person and see if they can figure out how to use it without any instructions. They’ll be looking for buttons to press, and probably won’t know that you need to pick up the receiver first.

S & H Green Stamps

Deciding what to do with a book of S&H Green Stamps was a big decision. A radio? A stuffed bear? The S&H catalog was like thumbing through the Sears catalog, only free!

Astronaut Food

Baby Boomers lived through the first days of the Space Program, so were naturally obsessed with all things astronaut—including what space explorers ate. Dehydrated treats like ice cream or Space Food Sticks were the must-have treat, especially for kids.

Cursive Schoolbook

Yep, back in Baby Boom one of the required courses was learning to write in cursive, and you’d copy lines and letters from a schoolbook. Who’d have expected that it would eventually become almost a secret code to the younger generations?

Love Beads

Love beads consisted of a single string of beads, often homemade, and it was a fashion statement among the hippie crowd. What set them apart from an ordinary necklace: Love beads were worn by men as well as women.

That’s what’s in our Boomer Box. What would be in yours?

***Follow our BLOG. Be sure to check out Boom Again® on Facebook, Instagram, & Twitter***