American Life at Mid-Century
During his years at the Saturday
Evening Post, Ollie Atkins' photographs captured the daily life of small-town
America. This is just a small sampling of the hundreds of Americans photographed
by Atkins.
To see a larger version of a photograph just click on the image. The three-part
number code refers to the original photograph in the Atkins Collection.
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2. 
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1. Downtown Charlotte.
2. Workers at the Belvedere Hosiery Company.
3. Nancy Jones with her prized pony, Top Hat.
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5. 
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4. Introducing the 1950
Harvest Sale at Belk's Department Store.
5. Lunch break at Central High.
6. Boosters of the proposed Charlotte Auditorium and Coliseum.
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7. Mayor Shaw crowns Eleanor
Smith Southern States Fair Queen.
8. Foursome approaching the first tee at the Charlotte Country Club.
9. High school kids "hanging out" around a jalopy.
"Our National University" Howard College (1948)
10.
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10. Howard University, Washington,
D.C.
11. Howard law students studying in the library.
12. Students on campus.
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134-3-3
13. Engineering students'
practical application.
14. Howard University Chorus.
15. Howard University Library.
Hot Shoppes (1948)
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16. J. Willard Marriott.
17. Drive-in service.
18. Cafeteria line.
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19. A family dinner at Hot
Shoppes.
20. Hot Shoppes' Art Deco design.
21. Dining room staff training.
"The Pied Piper
of Ice Cream" (1949)
The Good Humor Man
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23. 
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22. Good Humor man with
two ice cream lovers.
23. Man's best friend loves ice cream too.
24. The Good Humor factory.
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25. The Good Humor
man soaks his feet after a long day at work.
26. Good Humor men are always the center of attention.
27. The Good Humor man makes a delivery at a costume party.
"This School is Ready for the H-Bomb" (1954)
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28. School children duck
for cover under their desks during H-Bomb drills.
29. Family packing survival supplies in their basement.
30. School children pratice blast drills in the hallway of their
school.
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31. The Junior Civil Defense
Club members putting signs up in the halls.
32. Practicing first-aid on the lawn.
33. A school warden barks out instructions.
"The Old School Bus" (1950)
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35. 
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34. High school students
from Ozark, Arkansas, enjoying their trip to the East Coast.
35. Ozark students admiring the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
36. Riding the subway in New York City.
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37. Admiring the New
York City skyline from the ferry boat.
38. Students posing with the Statue of Liberty in the background.
39. Taking a stroll through Chinatown.
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40. One of the boys
tries out his first "seegar" in New York City.
41. Shopping in Chinatown.
42. Lost Again!
