--- description: As summer fades into fall, a look back at how beachgoers enjoyed the seashore in the 1940s and what has changed since then. title: What a Day at the Beach Looked Like in 1948 image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt9a259625fb6c498a/69885f99f887dce6d2e91e75/150817-beach-fun-01.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [photography](/tag/photography/) ## photography Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # What a Day at the Beach Looked Like in 1948  by [Eliza Berman](/author/eliza-berman/)  ## Eliza Berman Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Berman is a senior editor at TIME. Aug 27, 2015 12:00 PM CUT  Caption from LIFE. The perils of blanket tossing are happily undergone by pretty Miss Norma Baker with the help of eight husky friends at Hermosa Beach in California. Caption from LIFE. The perils of blanket tossing are happily undergone by pretty Miss Norma Baker with the help of eight husky friends at Hermosa Beach in California.John Florea—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  by [Eliza Berman](/author/eliza-berman/)  ## Eliza Berman Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Berman is a senior editor at TIME. Aug 27, 2015 12:00 PM CUT As summer fizzles to an end and children trade beach balls for backpacks, beachgoers pay their final visits to the shore. But the beach today doesn’t look quite like it did in 1948—and not just because sea levels are [rising](http://ocean.nationalgeographic.com/ocean/critical-issues-sea-level-rise/ "undefined"). When LIFE chronicled how Americans were enjoying their beaches in the late 1940s, its photographers found revelers from Cape Cod to California engaging in activities not often seen today. They were belly-sliding, trampoline flipping, tossing one another in the air on blankets and shooting grape juice from water guns. Still, if one thing has remained constant over the years, it’s captured in LIFE’s homage to the freedom of the seaside. As the editors wrote: --- > “” --- _Liz Ronk, who edited this gallery, is the Photo Editor for LIFE.com. Follow her on Twitter_ [_@lizabethronk_](https://twitter.com/LizabethRonk "undefined")_._  Caption from LIFE. The perils of blanket tossing are happily undergone by pretty Miss Norma Baker with the help of eight husky friends at Hermosa Beach in California. John Florea—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  A woman sunbathes at Hermosa Beach, California, 1948. John Florea—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  A surfer catches a wave in the distance at Hermosa Beach, California, 1948. John Florea—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  A game of volleyball underway at Santa Monica Beach, California, 1948. Loomis Dean—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Daring young man flies off trampoline at California's Santa Monica Beach, where movie starlets show off. Loomis Dean—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Pretty girl gets fast and foamy surf ride on inflated mattress cover at Hermosa Beach. John Florea—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  A car pulled over by Santa Monica Beach, California, 1948. Loomis Dean—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  A couple plays cards at Santa Monica Beach, California, 1948. Loomis Dean—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Young men take a break for cigarettes and Coca-Cola at Hermosa Beach, California, 1948. John Florea—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Friends bury a young woman in the sand at Hermosa Beach, California, 1948. John Florea—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  A man climbs on the roof of Neta's hit dog stand at Hermosa Beach, California, 1948. John Florea—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Gymnastics in the sand at Hermosa Beach, California, 1948. John Florea—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Belly-sliding, a perilous but pleasant sport, is demonstrated by an expert at California's Hermosa Beach. John Florea—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  A child reads comics in the sand at Hermosa Beach, California, 1948. John Florea—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Hermosa Beach, California, 1948. John Florea—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4000522/summer-beach-1948/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4000522/summer-beach-1948/"},"headline":"What a Day at the Beach Looked Like in 1948","datePublished":"2015-08-27T12:00:48.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T05:02:01.354Z","description":"There's still time to bring back belly-sliding before the end of beach season","url":"https://time.com/4000522/summer-beach-1948/","keywords":["photography","California","LIFE Magazine","1948","Loomis Dean"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt9a259625fb6c498a/69885f99f887dce6d2e91e75/150817-beach-fun-01.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Eliza Berman","jobTitle":"Berman is a senior editor at TIME.","url":"https://time.com/author/eliza-berman/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt9a259625fb6c498a/69885f99f887dce6d2e91e75/150817-beach-fun-01.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"1948 Hermosa Beach California","caption":"he perils of blanket tossing are happily undergone by pretty Miss Norma Baker with the help of eight husky friends at Hermosa Beach in California.","creditText":"John Florea—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/photography/","name":"photography"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4000522/summer-beach-1948/","name":"What a Day at the Beach Looked Like in 1948"}}]}] ```