Was life in Phoenix better in the twenties, as compared to now?


As someone who is interested in time-traveling, I'm often asked if life was better "back in the day", or not. It's an excellent question. And as as some who likes to see things from different points of view, that's where I start when answering that question. The point of view that I always start with is mine, a 21st Century man - so let's compare today with the 1920s in Phoenix, Arizona.

This is a very complicated subject, so let's narrow it down to some things that really matter: cars, beer, and money.

I just love the style of 1920s cars, and I'm sure that since the streets weren't very crowded, there would be no need for seatbelts, which wouldn't be in cars for another forty years. Gasoline was cheap, but it had lead in it, so it was very toxic, but nobody knew anything about that. Nowadays cars have safety features, airbags, and air conditioning, and so I'm inclined to prefer the modern cars. Especially because of air conditioning on a hot day in Phoenix!

Beer was illegal in the 1920s, as was any type of intoxicating beverage, and wouldn't be legal until Prohibition was repealed in 1933. There were some drawbacks to this, as it increased the price of beer, because of middle-men like Al Capone, and unfortunately some "hooch" was poisonous. There were plenty of "Speakeasies" (secret bars) in Phoenix, but I tend to be a nervous person, and I doubt that I'd like the idea of being arrested for having a glass of beer. Again, I'm gonna vote for nowadays, where I can store cans of beer in my refrigerator without fear of the law.

And as for money, the 1920s was a great time, until 1929, when the stock market crashed. There was no Federally-insured coverage for banks in the '20s, so if your bank folded, you lost your money. Valley Bank (which you can see in the pic up there) survived the crash, but many banks didn't. I don't have a lot of money, but what I do have goes through a bank, so I'd rather not wake up one morning to find my money all gone. So yeah, I'll stick with the 21st Century on that.

There are, of course, many other things to consider, and I'll be pondering more of them today. So if it's OK with you, I'll time-travel to Phoenix in the 1920s in my imagination, but I like coming back to the 21st Century, in spite of modern annoyances, like robo-calls.

Image at the top of this post: Looking at the northeast corner of 1st Avenue and Adams in the 1920s, Phoenix, Arizona.

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