30 Vintage Photos From 1926 That Take You Back A Full Century
In 1926, the first talking motion picture was released, “Don Juan.” A century later, in 2026, we’re streaming movies instantly to devices that fit in our pockets. The technology leap is incomprehensible.
These vintage photos from 1926 capture life exactly 100 years ago. A world where silent films were cutting-edge, where most homes didn’t have electricity, and where daily life looked nothing like it does now. It’s only a century, but it might as well be a different planet.
1. “The original Michelin Man standing outside an advertising vehicle in Santa Clara, 1926”
2. “Family during Christmas eve, 1926, Warsaw, Poland”
3. “Greta Garbo with MGM’s Leo the Lion, 1926”
4. “Alcohol lumber smuggling truck, 1926.”
5. “Before planes had heat, pilots flew in winter flying clothing, 1926”
6. “Triple decker bus / Berlin, Germany / 1926.”
7. “My grandparents in a photo booth, 1926.”
8. “Cambridge students, 1926”
9. “School boys at Ardingly College, West Sussex. Heading home for Christmas (1926)”
10. “Great Northern Pullman Section Car, 1926.”
11. “Babe Ruth’s homerun ball, that went over the stadium and smashed a window, 1926”
12. “A parade celebrating Broadway’s 300th anniversary in 1926”
13. “A family road trip to Stone Mountain in Georgia, 1926”
14. “The most glorious mobile home ever created, 1926”
15. “Clyde Barrow’s mugshot, 1926”
16. “A policewoman chasing a gang of skinny dippers down the street at Hyde Park, 1926”
17. “Flappers grabbing a milkshake at a diner, 1926”
18. “Alfred and Alma Hitchcock on their wedding day in 1926”
19. “A.A. Milne, his son Christopher Robin, and the real Winnie the Pooh, 1926”
20. “Running drills with the Achille Serre Ladies Fire Brigade in London, 1926”
21. “One of Hollywood’s most famous actresses working as a lifeguard before the fame, Bette Davis, 1926”
22. “This proud mom is out for a ride on her new stroller bike, 1926”
23. “My Great-Grandpa in the summer of 1926 with his first car, which had 12 horsepower and no reverse.”
24. “Silent film actress Myrna Loy, 1926”
25. “Going for a stroll on her new scooter, 1926”
26. “Nikola Tesla’s cell phone prediction, 1926”
27. “Getting some directions from a friendly officer, New Mexico, 1926”
28. “Flappers doing a dangerous dance stop the Sherman Hotel, Chicago, 1926”
29. “Playing in the flooded streets of NYC, 1926”
30. “My Grandmother at a 5th Avenue Photo Studio, Circa 1926”
