h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

kif says:

"I was wondering if anyone else can remind me of the stuff in my house in the 1940's. I can remember the wireless which needed to go to a shop each week to have an accumulator topped up.And a cigarette box a bloke came to fill up once week and the adults got cigs out by putting in a shilling. I got cigs out by fiddling around with with a knifesadface . And the only soap in the house was bright yellow and rough as rats to use.What other household products have disapeared I womder"

"The Boss remebered lucifers"

The 40's is pushing a bit far back. If you include the 50's I can remember the dolly tub, podger and mangle, the coal man's horse, trams, cinder toffee and picking tar off the road in Summer.

I can remember some things from the 50s although I wasn't born until the 60s, because there was lots of the 50s still lying around our house.

Doors were painted in a light cream and then a dark brown on top. A comb was then dragged along the paintwork before the top layer dried to reveal the yellow through the brown to make a sort of fake wood grain effect.

Floors were covered in linoleum. This looked similar to modern vinyl but had to be polished regularly with wax polish.

Fireplaces were tiled.

In winter We had frost inside the windows