In the 1950's and 1960's, the largest luxury trailers were 31' long. Fifth wheels were seldom seen (except for carnival workers) and most "family travel trailers" were between 18' and 25'. Most luxury trailers were towed with IH Travelall's or Suburbans, family trailers were towed with the family station wagon or the "big Fury III". Gray water holding tanks didn't come about until the 1970's and the biggest Dometic refrigerator was in the 6 cuft range. Most RV refrigerators were smaller than that and had to be "lit" from outside. Instamatic "revolutionized" the RV refrigerator in around 1969 by introducing a "flint operated spark ignition" that could be started from inside the RV. It was at the bottom of the refrigerator, behind a 2" panel, so if your refrigerator was at "eye level" you could actually see the sparker. If your refrigerator was mounted in the bottom counter, you had to stand on your head with a small mirror to see the pilot light. Water heaters routinely "blew out" with any wind, required matches or a Zippo lighter to restart and that was always from outside, usually in the rain and never at a convenient time.
Cushions were 5" foam, plastic/vinyl on one side and usually "lime green" or "brilliant orange" cloth on the other side. Most goucho beds had a cabinet above them that folded down to make a bunk bed with a 2" foam mattress. That 18" space was usually shared by all the kids and mom/dad slept on the goucho under them.
Few trailer bathrooms had a tub or shower, most were a "closet with a toilet and a sink". Black tanks were 15-20 gallons, no flush system, stunk when you opened the aluminum roof vent to let in fresh air and always seemed to leak under the trailer.
Lights were usually half 120 VAC and any "self respecting trailer" had a propane lantern mounted above the dinette. Campers were "living in high cotton" if they had a dedicated battery for the trailer. Many used the tow vehicle battery and there was always a fight to turn the lights off !!!!!
Brake controls were almost always Kelsey Hayes, hydraulically activated with a T fitting off the master cylinder, leaked and created stopping problems for most tow vehicles, even when the trailer wasn't being towed. Of course, gas at Texaco or Esso was around 25 cents a gallon, so towing was within the budget of most "blue collar workers". I can honestly say that I never remember a vacation that didn't include at least one overnight stay at a garage to replace a fan belt, a water pump or a generator. It seemed like every family vacation, even with a new car, included that obligatory mechanic's visit.....
Today's trailers, tow vehicles and conveniences are "worlds ahead" of what we had "back when bias ply tires were the norm" and radials had yet to be marketed to the public.....
Be greatful for RV progress, even if it does include the occasional "self leveling malfunction"... At least you can get a hot shower after breaking out the old plastic stacking blocks that you never threw away.......
Ahhh the "good old days" thank goodness they are "behind us", eh?
