The Retronaught Guide To Raising Children by author Chris Wild is an astonishing (and occasionally hilarious) look back at the parenting methods of the early- to mid-nineteenth century, and they’re frankly bizarre.
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Parents sit with their children who are receiving sun ray therapy, said to ward off chest infections and anaemia, 1938.
A tiny baby gets some fresh air in a cage dangling from a top floor flat’s window, 1938.
Two tiny boxers face off in a makeshift ring, despite barely being able to lift the gloves, 1950s.
Children sleep outside, on wood-frame canvas beds, on the roof of a school for orphans.
Kids learn to swim on a “merry-go-round” rope system at a Cincinatti, US, school, 1930.
These two youngsters look like experienced smokers in their lavish secret den.
These babes aren’t too happy about being kept out of trouble, understandably, as they hang from the washing line.
Forget flashing lights and bells, all this young cyclist gets from his mother is a polite sign asking the (admittedly few) motorists on the road to “watch out for me”.
These London children are spending a night during the Blitz in a makeshift air raid shelter — also known as a sturdy wooden cupboard.
And to keep this tot safe while his brothers play, mom just popped him in a trash can.
You can get the book on Amazon.