Literally they were designed to raise the children high enough so that, if there were a crash, they could hit the windshield better. Not to mention some had a metal bar right at neck height for instant dismemberment.
Remember When Child Car Seats Were Designed To Kill Children
Reality Decoded 
Like everything new, a period of adjustment is needed!
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That’s what I was thinking but I still have that nagging feeling that maybe people just didn’t care. Its not like they didn’t know how dangerous it was and they were intelligent enough to provide effective protection. Kind of like how we still know school buses need seatbelts.
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Exactly! My bestie suffers every day from pain because she broke her back in a bus accident when we were in 4th grade!
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I also remember when seatbelts weren’t required.
…and putting 13 kids (yeah 13) in a Chevy Chevette to run up to the local roller rink. — okay, so that only happened a couple of times.
Good times!
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Oo were we brave or stupid back then?
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I don’t know- in many ways; we are becoming more stupid, the longer we live.
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If you’re going to go out with a big bang, you’d might as well grab a front row seat to take in the full experience. And I imagine that metal contraption shown in photo three was responsible for many a pinched finger and scraped appendage, as well.
Good times.
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Eek!
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All before crash test dummies and safety testing! Ugh
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