Every family album hides a surprise: the moment you realise your mother once skated barefoot down a hill, or your quiet father posed on a motorbike like a film star. The 35 photos below were shared online, mostly on Reddit's r/OldSchoolCool community, by people who found pictures of their parents taken long before they were born. Most date from the 1970s and 1980s, with a few reaching back to the late 1940s.
The joke that goes with these pictures is that our parents were cooler than us. The more interesting truth is that they had whole lives before parenthood: jobs, hobbies, risky adventures, first cars and first loves. Several of the photos show careers that were unusual at the time, such as women working on military jets or at NASA. Others capture a moment of courage, or simply a perfect afternoon.
We have grouped the photos by theme and added context about the places, machines and jobs they show. The stories behind each image come from the people who posted them, so details such as dates are their own recollections. Each caption links to the original post so the contributor gets the credit.
On wheels: skateboards, cars and motorbikes
Barefoot on a skateboard, California, 1974
A young woman crouches low on a narrow board, hair flying and feet bare. The mid-1970s were a turning point for skateboarding, when new polyurethane wheels made boards far smoother and faster, and California was its heart. Shared by jsparks117.
Skating in a suit, Hyde School, 1982
Jacket, tie, sunglasses and a briefcase held out for balance: few school photos have more style. The poster said their father was a student at Hyde School when this was taken. Shared by targat2.
Sixteen, with her own Camaro, 1975
A teenager sits proudly on the bonnet of a Chevrolet Camaro, the second-generation model that ran through most of the 1970s. For many American teens then, a car was the ultimate symbol of independence. Shared by MorganGanem.
A motorbike and a heavy knit, late 1960s
Barefoot on a motorcycle, in a chunky jumper and a mop of hair, this young man looks ready for an album cover. The black-and-white print and the casual pose capture late-1960s style perfectly. Shared by cherrycherries.
A first car bought at eleven, 1948
According to his child, this boy bought a 1939 Ford with money he earned farming, aged just 11, and drove it daily. Rural America had looser rules for young drivers then, especially on farms. It is a striking reminder of how early many children worked in the 1940s. Shared by godllub.
A handstand on a moving board, 1977
Balancing upside down on a skateboard rolling down a suburban street takes real skill. Freestyle tricks like this were popular in 1970s skate contests, before ramps and bowls took over. Shared by -lilsebastian.
Forty-eight beers on a unicycle, early 1980s
A shirtless rider wobbles down a quiet street with two cases of beer held above his head. It is equal parts balance act and party preparation. Shared by skeleton-spotted.
Skating with a cast, late 1970s
A girl in knee socks and a red sweatshirt stands on a home-made ramp, board in hand and wrist in plaster. A broken bone clearly was not going to end her skating season. Shared by thestrokesfan1988.
He entered a raffle and won a Shelby GT500
The poster's father thought he was entering a shoe shop's draw for a sports jacket. The prize turned out to be a 1967 Shelby GT500, the first year of the model, with a 428-cubic-inch V8; just over 2,000 were built that year. Today well-kept examples sell for many times their original price. Shared on Reddit.
Jobs that looked like adventures
A barbecue on top of a submarine
Sailors in shorts grill meat on the deck of a surfaced submarine at sea. Crews had few chances to get fresh air on long patrols, so a deck barbecue was a real treat. Shared by shanbuscus.
Tank instructor, 1984
Wearing a tank crew helmet, a young woman looks out from a turret hatch. The post does not say which army or base this was, but women in any armoured role were rare in the mid-1980s. Shared by danabre.
Hard-hat diving in the Red Sea, 1970s
A bearded diver holds a classic brass diving helmet, the kind connected to air pumped from the surface. The poster said their father worked as a US military contractor in Saudi Arabia, diving in the Red Sea, home to some of the world's richest coral reefs. Shared by urs1ne.
Teaching maths in Southern California, late 1970s
A teacher strikes a surfing pose in front of a chalk wave, with "tube" written into his equation. It is the kind of lesson students remember decades later. Shared by iCollectSausage.
Looking up to a pilot father, late 1980s
A small boy in a flight jacket gazes at his father, an officer in uniform making a call from a wall phone. The poster said their dad was a fighter pilot. Shared by DatingPuppy.
At work at NASA, 1974
A woman in a bold patterned blouse sits at an office desk. 1974 was a busy year for the agency, with the final crew returning from the Skylab space station in February. Shared by sumthingabout.
Technician on the F-4 Phantom, 1980s
Ear defenders on, a woman leans into the cockpit of a fighter jet. The McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II flew from 1958, and more than 5,000 were built; the US Air Force retired its last combat Phantoms in 1996. Technicians like her kept these complex aircraft flying. Shared by Saintdavus.
Training sea lions for the Navy
A bearded trainer shares a close moment with a sea lion in a harness. The US Navy Marine Mammal Program, based in San Diego, has trained California sea lions and bottlenose dolphins since the 1960s to find mines, recover equipment from the seabed and detect intruding swimmers. Shared on Reddit.
Outdoors: surf, snow and wild places
Surfing in Peru for Surfer magazine, 1977
A surfer drops down the face of a wave. Peru has a strong surf culture and some of the longest left-hand waves on Earth, and Surfer magazine, founded in 1960, often sent photographers abroad in search of new breaks. Shared by fyrebrahnd.
A rearing horse in the driveway, 1980
A young man in a white T-shirt stays calmly in the saddle while a pale horse rears beside a parked sedan. It is one of the most dramatic snapshots in the collection. Shared by TheMasterOfDonuts.
Mid-air on skis, 1970s
A skier in little more than shorts kicks one ski high in the air, poles flung wide. The poster described him as the father of four boys, doing what he loved most. Shared by Reallybadat.
Alaska with a husky puppy named Okie
Sitting on the bonnet of an early Toyota Land Cruiser, a woman holds a husky puppy against a backdrop of mountains and spruce. Life in Alaska then meant long winters, rough roads and tough vehicles. Shared by tonyjefferson.
On horseback in Alaska, around 1980
Bearded and kitted out with saddlebags and a rifle bandolier, this rider looks like a frontier guide. His child wrote that they hope to be half the man he is. Shared by TrenchcoatTechnocrat.
A family water-ski pyramid
Five men in life vests form a human pyramid while being towed across a lake; the poster said these were their father and his cousins. Pyramid stunts like this were a staple of water-ski shows, made famous at Florida attractions such as Cypress Gardens. Shared by FrenchyVonRichter.
Style, travel and love
Sculpting a bust of his wife, 1980s
In a wood-panelled room, a man works on a clay head while the woman who inspired it sits nearby. It is a quiet, intimate picture of two people at home with their own creative projects. Shared by JankyTango.
Moscow, 1975
Standing in a long leather coat beside a Soviet car, with St Basil's Cathedral behind her, this traveller looks every bit the mystery. Western tourism to the USSR was tightly controlled during the Cold War, which made her trip unusual; her child joked she might have been a spy. Shared by smashingmellons.
A mirror selfie before selfies, 1989
Smiling into a round mirror, a young woman takes her own picture with a film camera. She would have waited days for the prints to come back to see whether it worked. Shared by cmajorlips.
Wedding day by motorbike, 1980
The bride in white and the groom in denim ride off on a motorcycle, surrounded by friends. It is a cheerful, unconventional start to married life. Shared in a Reddit post.
The "garden", 1980s
A woman holding a small dog stands almost hidden by tall green plants. The quotation marks in the original title hint that this was not a vegetable patch; growing cannabis was illegal across the United States at the time, and laws have changed a great deal since. Shared by Whisky_taco.
Carrying Magic Johnson
Two young men ham it up for the camera in a playful lift; the poster said one is their father and the other is basketball great Earvin "Magic" Johnson. Johnson won an NCAA title with Michigan State in 1979 and five NBA championships with the Los Angeles Lakers. Shared by ILikeBlazing.
Champion pie eater, 1950
A girl sits among a row of boys at a pie-eating contest, and according to her child she beat them all. Contests like this were a fixture of fairs and community events in mid-century America. Shared by Talking_Head.
France in the 1970s
Beard, cap, neckerchief and flared denim: this pose against an open car boot would suit a 1970s fashion shoot. Commenters joked that he could pass for a famous actor. Shared by eluviane.
"Shooting an album cover", 1982
A man in a blazer and tie stands waist-deep in the sea, shading his eyes as he looks into the distance. When his child asked what was going on, he simply replied that he was shooting an album cover. Shared by PatternedCollar.
Santorini, Greece, 1985
A young couple embrace in the shallow water beneath dramatic volcanic cliffs. Santorini's coastline was shaped by one of the largest eruptions in human history, about 3,600 years ago. According to their child, this trip is also where their family began. Shared by GallowBoob.
Nineteen in 1973
A muscular young man with long hair poses beside a convertible in cut-off shorts. It is classic early-1970s summer style. Shared by bryanpool51.
A moment of courage: Auburn, Alabama, 1985
The most powerful picture in this collection has nothing to do with fashion. A young man in a polo shirt points a finger at a Ku Klux Klan member in a white robe and hood, during what appears to be a public Klan event, while other robed figures stand nearby. The poster said the man was a friend of their father.
The Klan, founded after the American Civil War, used terror against Black Americans and others for more than a century. By the 1980s it was much smaller, but rallies and marches still took place across the South and often drew counter-protesters. Standing face to face with a Klansman, in public and on camera, took real nerve. Shared by ohdaviing.
How to rediscover your own parents' photos
These pictures resonate because they show parents as people with their own stories. If you have old family albums, they are worth a closer look before prints fade or memories are lost.
- Ask about the day, not just the date. Who took the photo, where were they going, what happened next? Those details are what bring a picture to life.
- Scan at high resolution. A flatbed scanner at 600 dpi or more, or a good phone scanning app, will preserve prints and slides.
- Label everything. Add names, places and years to file names or captions while someone still remembers them.
- Ask before posting. Your parents, and anyone else in the frame, may not want an old photo shared publicly.
- Share copies with relatives. Multiple copies in different places protect against loss.
Cooler or not, the people in these photos were figuring life out, just as we are. That may be the best reason to ask them about it while you can. For more family stories told through pictures, see Recreated Family Photos: Familiar Poses Across the Years.
Sources: Photos and stories from contributors to Reddit r/OldSchoolCool, r/pics and Imgur, credited under each photo; Wikipedia: Shelby Mustang; Wikipedia: McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II; Wikipedia: US Navy Marine Mammal Program.
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