# Need 1950s research help! **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 6, 2000, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-1950s-research-help/9923 "2000-04-06T18:59:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2000, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-1950s-research-help/9923/1 "2000-04-06T18:59:00Z")
The subject of my next bio lived and worked in England in the 1950s, so I need to do a lot of research on that time and place. Important dates, events, people, social happenings, etc. I’ve been doing Web searches but have come up blank so far—are there any Web pages or actual books detailing a chronology of the 1950s; specifically, the '50s in the UK? Even better, is there something like that on the whole 20th century? I seem to remember there being a “Day-by-Day” book; is it any good? Detailed? ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2000, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-1950s-research-help/9923/2 "2000-04-06T19:48:00Z")
I’m not sure whether you’re looking more for a social or a grand historical perspective. Issues that dominated the British perpective throughout the 1950’s would include: - Laying the groundwork to give up the Empire. (The earliest colonies became independent in the 1940’s and the bulk of the small ones became independent in the 1960’s, but the 1950’s sit astride the whole reassessment as a society of the Imperial attitude.) - The perception in some circles that a “retreat from empire” amounted to surrendering their torch of “world leadership” to the U.S. (Note that these are _perceptions_ by different groups. The reality is much more complex.) - While sharing the fairly profitable economy that the U.S. experienced in the 1950’s (as the two industrial nations that had not been bombed to ruins), Britain staggered under a huge war debt that affected many of its decisions. - Continuing involvement in the Middle East. (The U.K. and France shared most of the “protectorates” that became Israel and the Arab nations in the 1940’s and they were dragged into several conflicts, there–and leaped at the chance to get into some others, with tragic results.) - Ongoing guerrilla warfare against Marxist revolution in Southeast Asia (with rather more successful results than France and the U.S. achieved). - The Cold War, of course. - The onset of what the U.S. refers to as “socialized medicine” along with a number of other national welfare programs that follow socialist models. This is a _major_ social adjustment in British history. - Accession of Queen Elizabeth II (who, before her coronation had been fairly popular for her willingness to work among the people during WWII.) My memory is that she didn’t get stuffy until she had been on the throne a while. I have checked most of my memories against [Britain Since 1945](http://www.britannica.com/bcom/eb/article/8/0,5716,120048+12+110751,00.html) from the Encyclopædia Britannica and I was pleased to see that the EB and I have similar recollections. There should be links you can follow up, there, although I was disappointed to find a lack of direct links to social developments. You might try searching on Art, Theatre, Dress, Movies (cinema?), and similar topics, not for what the EB will provide, but for the books and web sites that they often link to. * * * Tom~ ---
**Author:** ![pluto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f08c70/32.png) [@pluto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pluto)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2000, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-1950s-research-help/9923/3 "2000-04-06T20:04:00Z")
I was born in the fifties and I speak English. Is that close enough? I can remember a lot of things but most of them are about my family, so I’m not sure you could use too much of it in your book. * * * “I’ll tell him but I don’t think he’ll be very keen. He’s already got one, you see!” ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2000, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-1950s-research-help/9923/4 "2000-04-06T20:08:00Z")
I seem to recall that the Britannica issued annual yearbooks as supplements for its encyclopedias. I’m sure they’re in a musty old backroom of a nearby public library. Perhaps you could also find the English equivalent of Life magazine during that era. * * * I understand all the words, they just don’t make sense together like that. ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2000, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-1950s-research-help/9923/5 "2000-04-06T20:11:00Z")
Try [www.historychannel.com.](http://www.historychannel.com.) If you do a search by decade without a specific topic you’ll get a timeline of the 1950s by year along with a link to related websites. I didn’t explore it to any great degree (as my computer spontaneously rebooted for no apparent reason before I could) and undoubtedly there won’t be large quantities of in-depth material but there may be something there to point you in a better direction. ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2000, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-1950s-research-help/9923/6 "2000-04-06T20:11:00Z")
Thanks, Tomndebb, I bookmarked that site and will note some of the political happenings. What I really need is a day-to-day chronology so I can find out what everyday living was like in Britain from the late 1920s till 1960; primarily the '50s. Important dates: coronations, disasters, scandals, etc. Also what was going on in the post-war recovery (I have a lot of information on the actual war years, that’s easy to come by), show biz, fashion, etc. I think I have to look for a comprehensive 20th century chronology-I’m pretty sure there is such a book, does anyone know specifics? Or is there anything like that now on the WWW? ---
**Author:** ![labradorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3ec8ea/32.png) [@labradorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/labradorian)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2000, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-1950s-research-help/9923/7 "2000-04-06T20:28:00Z")
Check out newspapers on microfilm, and attend used book sales to get cheap items from the era that you can use to get a feel for the time. * * * **Dee da dee da dee dee do do / Dee ba ditty doh / Deedle dooby doo ba dee um bee ooby / Be doodle oodle doodle dee doh** [http://members.xoom.com/labradorian/](http://members.xoom.com/labradorian/) ---
**Author:** ![Ursa\_Major](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/a88e57/32.png) [@Ursa\_Major](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ursa_Major)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2000, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-1950s-research-help/9923/8 "2000-04-06T20:51:00Z")
I think you have to download a special reader program to access it, but you can take a look at a chronological index for the London _Times_ here: [http://historynews.chadwyck.com/](http://historynews.chadwyck.com/) A few things that come to mind when I think of the UK in the '50s: -The Cambridge Four spy ring. -Women allowed into the House of Lords. -Churchill’s second term as PM. (I think he was knighted in the '50s, too.) -Suez, Sudan, Egypt mess. -Skiffle -Devorced war brides coming home from the US like Indian nabobs. -James Bond novels. ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2000, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-1950s-research-help/9923/9 "2000-04-06T21:49:00Z")
If this link works, it should go right to Amazon’s selection of 20th Century Chronologies. My suggestestion would be to print out the page and take it to the library. I suspect that most of these are focused on the U.S. experience. The one work that may be more global (including Britain) would probably be **The Oxford History of the Twentieth Century** by Michael Eliot Howard(Editor), William Roger Louis (Editor): [http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/feature/-/14727/102-2151395-7066463](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/feature/-/14727/102-2151395-7066463) **However** , Amazon also has a British outlet/subsidiary/whatever at [www.amazon.co.uk](http://www.amazon.co.uk) and a search for “20th Century” there brought up the following list (I hope). (I have no idea what the protocol is for ordering books from the UK.) [http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/search-handle-form/026-7712025-0681868](http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/search-handle-form/026-7712025-0681868) Tilted a bit to the U.S. experience, but with a lot of international major news: [http://abcnews.go.com/century/timelines/](http://abcnews.go.com/century/timelines/) Eclectic and not really organized, but it has a lot of launch points: [http://dir.yahoo.com/Arts/Humanities/History/By\_Time\_Period/20th\_Century/](http://dir.yahoo.com/Arts/Humanities/History/By_Time_Period/20th_Century/) An atlas showing trends laid out on the globe with additional information on specific events: [http://users.erols.com/mwhite28/20centry.htm](http://users.erols.com/mwhite28/20centry.htm) This _would_ have been exactly what you were looking for, except that it is really geared to the U.S. (again, international events are mentioned): [http://www.infoplease.com/millennium1.html#century](http://www.infoplease.com/millennium1.html#century) This is an _expensive_ look at 20th Century arts from a British perspective (written in 1974). [http://www.fitzroydearborn.com/chrono20.htm](http://www.fitzroydearborn.com/chrono20.htm) ## The BBC had a series, _My Century_ similar to the PBS _People’s Century_. It does _not_ have the chronology you need, although there may be links to other information: [http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/mycentury/](http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/mycentury/) Tom~ ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2000, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-1950s-research-help/9923/10 "2000-04-07T23:03:00Z")
Testing the CGI. ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2000, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-1950s-research-help/9923/11 "2000-04-07T23:08:00Z")
I’m not getting through to the search results on the British Amazon link. Going directly to the home page and entering “20th century” while selecting the drop-down “books” brought me right back to the page I wanted. About halfway down are a whole series of books on the 20th Century by decade. I’ll try the link again, but the backup method should work. [http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/search-handle-form/026-7712025-0681868](http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/search-handle-form/026-7712025-0681868) ---
**Author:** ![aseymayo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a88e57/32.png) [@aseymayo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aseymayo)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2000, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-1950s-research-help/9923/12 "2000-04-07T23:20:00Z")
Ordering from Amazon UK is just as easy as ordering from Amazon US - the UK site recognizes you if you already have a US account. And the delivery is fast - you don’t have to wait forever for your books to arrive. It’s how I always manage to be the first on my block to have the latest Terry Pratchett. ---
**Author:** ![Rodd\_Hill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/3ab097/32.png) [@Rodd\_Hill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rodd_Hill)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2000, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-1950s-research-help/9923/13 "2000-04-07T23:21:00Z")
Eve, here’s a few leads: [http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/Britain.html](http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/Britain.html) most is earlier than your scope, but there are some good social history links 1920-50; Here’s a timeline that goes up to the 1990s, and has a good sampling of 20s-50s events: [http://www.headley1.demon.co.uk/histdate/](http://www.headley1.demon.co.uk/histdate/) Hope these are of some use… * * * **Swirly Thing alert!!** ---
**Author:** ![Rodd\_Hill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/3ab097/32.png) [@Rodd\_Hill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rodd_Hill)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2000, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-1950s-research-help/9923/14 "2000-04-08T00:05:00Z")
More: Malayan Emergency and British forces, 1948-60: [http://www.geocities.com/~mspirit/malaya/index.html](http://www.geocities.com/~mspirit/malaya/index.html) ; British forces in Suez Crisis 1956 (_big_ change in British role in world affairs): [http://www.geocities.com/~mspirit/suez/suez-index.html](http://www.geocities.com/~mspirit/suez/suez-index.html) Good background to Malayan Emergency + British “police” approach: [http://www.ruc.police.uk/museum/proceedings1.htm](http://www.ruc.police.uk/museum/proceedings1.htm) Teddy Boys: [http://www.rockabilly.nl/cavan/teddyboys.htm](http://www.rockabilly.nl/cavan/teddyboys.htm) ; An excellent book on post-war society in the UK, particularly the rise of the welfare society, is “Now That the War is Over,” by Addison. Here’s a link that someone has made for subjects covered by the book: [http://www.packer34.freeserve.co.uk/nowthat.htm](http://www.packer34.freeserve.co.uk/nowthat.htm) ## Bonne chance! **Swirly Thing alert!!** ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2000, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-1950s-research-help/9923/15 "2000-04-07T13:17:00Z")
Thank you, all—I will check these out next week! I never order from Amazon—I find books through them, then go to one of the online used-book services and order it much cheaper (and more reliably!). Thanks again, I’ll keep you up-to-date (and of course, the Teeming Millions get a nod in my next book!). ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2000, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-1950s-research-help/9923/16 "2000-04-07T15:47:00Z")
I just visit my library, ask my librarian & watch her go to work & bring me a stack of books. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2000, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-1950s-research-help/9923/17 "2000-04-08T05:16:00Z")
Eve, check out this site [http://www.internet-promotions.co.uk/archives/index.htm](http://www.internet-promotions.co.uk/archives/index.htm) . It’s a Scottish historical site with a few articles from the 50’s. There’s an interesting local view on the growth of rock’n’roll. I also found a mention of a book called _The Best of Times: Growing up in Britain in the 1950’s_ by Alison Pressley. The three volumes mentioned here [http://www.petford.demon.co.uk/kaleidos/merchmn.htm](http://www.petford.demon.co.uk/kaleidos/merchmn.htm) are a history of British television from 1950 to 1997. I don’t know who the subject of your next biography is, but these books might contain some useful information. This site is from Ulster not Britain but it’s a history of small town life in the 1950’s. Unfortunately it’s a goddamned Tripods site but if you can overlook that it’s at: [http://members.tripod.com/nlpearce/index2.htm](http://members.tripod.com/nlpearce/index2.htm)