Oh, Baby!

Conditions were ripe in post-war America for a surge in population. Thousands of young men returned home from the war, eager to pursue dreams postponed during the war. The G.I. Bill enabled many to purchase a first home of their own, and a stronger economy encouraged them to begin to raise a family. The result was an unprecedented birthrate that began in 1946 and extended through 1964, reaching a peak of 4.3 million births in 1957.

Members of Minnesota's Greatest Generation who had grown up with hardship during the Great Depression and had dealt with shortages imposed by war wanted their children to have happy, carefree and abundant lives. Mothers turned to Dr. Benjamin Spock's bestselling baby care manual, The Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care, for advice on raising their children. Families moved to the suburbs to provide a safer, more expansive environment for children to play. Stores catered to the desire of parents with more expendable income to provide a better life for their children with a range of furniture, clothing, toys and other childhood accoutrements.

The health and welfare of children was a high priority, particularly during the polio epidemic of the 1950s, which brought immunizations into the schools. The University of Minnesota placed a strong emphasis on child development studies, and offered educational programs for expectant parents.

Keen on providing the best possible education for baby boom children, taxpayers across the state supported the construction of larger, more modern schools and the hiring of more teachers to accommodate the growing numbers of students.

Citations:

• Statistical Abstract of the United States, 1946 to 1964. Washington, DC: U.S. Census Bureau.
• Minnesota State Demographic Center, St. Paul, Minnesota.
• Photo: Children making angels in the snow, 1950.
• Benjamin Spock. Microsoft® Encarta® Online Encyclopedia 2008. 1997-2008 Microsoft Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
• Spock, Dr. Benjamin, The Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care. New York: Pocket Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster, 1946.
• Photo: Lunch time at Phyllis Wheatley Nursery School, Minneapolis, 1950.
• Photo: Polio shots for children at Lincoln School, St. Cloud, 1953.
• Photo: Graduates and other students at Margaret Barry Nursery School, 701 Fillmore Street, Minneapolis, 1957.
• Photo: Construction of Fairview Junior High School, Roseville, 1956.