Back in the 1920s, there was a specific person appointed at every beach that had the authority to measure every woman’s bathing suit to make sure that it was long enough and not considered indecent. If you really think about it, people back then were very strict with women’s attire at the beach. If it was considered too short, she would be fined a hefty fee.
The inner feminist in us rejects this idea, and this for sure would not be accepted these days. The 20th century delivered the most change, especially in women’s rights, than any other century before then, and this photo shows the progress humanity has made.
Walter Yeo
This is Walter Yeo in a photo taken in 1917. He was an English sailor during World War I who received a very bad facial injury and needed serious reconstructive surgery. Yeo was thought to be one of the first individuals in the world to ever receive facial reconstruction by using a skin flap.
At the time, this type of advanced plastic surgery still did not exist, making his case the first in history. Walter Yeo's surgery was a turning point in medicine, leading to innovation with the first cosmetic plastic surgery conducted in 1962, changing the face of humanity forever.
Spray Tanning
This was taken in 1956 in France when the quickest and most efficient way to get a tan was to get a fake one. Going down to the beach would have been too much of a hassle, so when these tanning machines were introduced, it was a complete game changer. Since then, the machinery has improved, and the opportunities are endless.
This Parisien woman is having her body spared in a darker shade. It was done using an infrared gun, which apparently didn't burn the skin. The fact that people could darken their skin in a matter of minutes was a surprising innovation that still goes on to this day.
Martin Luther King Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr. was one of history’s iconic role models. In this photo, the late civil rights leader is seen with his son on the front lawn of his home, taking a burnt cross out of his grass. Being the calm and loving person that he was, he took the cross off his lawn after it was burnt there by white supremacist individuals trying to make a statement.
He removed the cross while his son watched him, hoping to teach his future generation a lesson or two in life. These kinds of photos are not seen too often of great leaders in such intimate situations.
1890s Prosthetics
The earliest documentation of prosthetics goes back to 1579. A French doctor, Ambroise Paré, described in writing the prosthetics he used on some of his amputees. The artificial LED was only thought of in 1846, almost 300 years later, and since then, the science behind prosthetic limbs has constantly evolved.
In this photo, we see an 1890s version of the prosthetic legs given to a young child. As you can see, this girl is steadily standing with her two legs to give her support to stand. Back then, prosthetic legs had to be connected to your body to make sure that it would move properly with the designated limb.