--- title: Early Retirement: How to Retire Young, Then and Now description: When LIFE Magazine took a look at what it took to retire in your 40s, it found some truths that have stood the test of 60 years. canonical: https://time.com/4724817/early-retirement-photos/ author: Lily Rothman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-04-06T13:00:40.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T04:50:22.059Z og:title: Early Retirement: How to Retire Young, Then and Now og:description: Plus: Unpublished Alfred Eisenstaedt photographs of retirement life in the 1950s og:url: https://time.com/4724817/early-retirement-photos/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt9e8d6a5850e8d4ed/6988c11c4e9ee776daa0a569/170404-young-retirement-14.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2257 og:image:height: 1270 og:image:alt: Young Retirement 1957 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Early Retirement: How to Retire Young, Then and Now twitter:description: Plus: Unpublished Alfred Eisenstaedt photographs of retirement life in the 1950s twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt9e8d6a5850e8d4ed/6988c11c4e9ee776daa0a569/170404-young-retirement-14.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # This Is What It Took to Retire Early 60 Years Ago > Sponsored content. 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They are at time.com/newsletters and are separate from a paid subscription. by [Lily Rothman](https://time.com/author/lily-rothman/) and [Liz Ronk](https://time.com/author/liz-ronk/) Apr 6, 2017 1:00 PM UTC  Outtake from Young Retirement photo essay, 1957. Outtake from Young Retirement photo essay, 1957.Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images by [Lily Rothman](https://time.com/author/lily-rothman/) and [Liz Ronk](https://time.com/author/liz-ronk/) Apr 6, 2017 1:00 PM UTC “Early Retirement,” the headline in LIFE [blared](https://books.google.com/books?id=DFQEAAAAMBAJ&lpg=PP1&pg=PA48#v=twopage&q&f=false) in February of 1957\. Accompanied by photographs by [Alfred Eisenstaedt ](http://time.com/3491299/unforgettable-eisenstaedt-22-amazing-photos-by-a-master/)— some of which, including unpublished outtakes, are seen here — the article promised to share the secrets of men in their 40s who had managed the impressive feat of retiring while they still had the energy to enjoy the extra time. And, though the dollar figures they provided may be shockingly low 60 years later, when [retirement](http://time.com/money/4212970/best-retirement-calculators/) experts tell [potential retirees](http://time.com/money/collection-post/2791166/can-i-afford-to-retire/) that they should expect to need 70% of their pre-retirement income and when more Americans than ever [think they will need $1 million](http://time.com/money/4707906/americans-retire-1-million-survey/) to be ready for that milestone, some of the wisdom of those young retirees stands the test of time. Perhaps the most noticeable thing about the men featured in LIFE’s story is that all of them continued to make money even after they gave up their traditional jobs. Joel Brecheen, featured in the first slide above, had been making $10,000 annually as a salesman — that’s nearly $87,000 in [today’s dollars ](https://data.bls.gov/cgi-bin/cpicalc.pl?cost1=10000&year1=1957&year2=2017)— but, even if he had enough money, was “always out of pocket for time.” So it was in 1952 that he took his savings of $13,000 (about $119,500 today) and walked away from his job. He still worked some, owning an orange grove in Arizona and renting out apartments that he owned, and in fact made nearly as much money each year as he had before, but he spent his time with his family rather than his clients. [_Click here for more articles_](http://time.com/money/topic/looking-forward/) _from Time Inc.’s Looking Forward series._ Meanwhile, in 1953 Arthur and Kathryn Lynch had traded his $15,000 job ($137,000 today) in Pittsburgh and their $30,000 in savings for life in the Virgin Islands, where the $4,000 ($35,000) they made doing odd jobs and labor was plenty to live on. The move made by the Lynches was a key ingredient as they relied on the lower cost of living in St. John to make their retirement work. Likewise, Allen Cook, whose job as a pilot had kept him away from his family, had moved his family to Sarasota, Fla., where he could work full-time during the tourist season and concentrate on spending time with his kids the rest of the year. Accordingly, the story subject who was closest to being fully retired, Joseph B. Wertz, relied on $4,200 annual income from smart investing ($36,000 today) to fund a full life of hobbies and family — thanks to having left Washington for Santa Fe. It also took hard work to make retirement a success, both in terms of getting a more relaxed source of income off the ground and achieving the mental adjustment to passing days more quietly. Fifty years later, these early retirees perhaps don’t seem so different after all from their counterparts today.  Caption from LIFE. Joel Brecheen enjoys the pool he built in Phoenix, Ariz. with his wife and their two daughters, Leigh, 2 (left) and Laurie, 1 (right). Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Outtake from Young Retirement photo essay, 1957. Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Outtake from Young Retirement photo essay, 1957. Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Outtake from Young Retirement photo essay, 1957. Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. On Bordeaux Peak, a short jeep drive from home, Lynches look across St. John to Tortola in distance. Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Wife and son, 18-month-old Bruce, are admired by a relaxed Joe. When their investment increased from $3,500 in 1948 to its present $4,200, the Wertzes had so much money left over they put some in a trust fund for Bruce. Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Cooking hamburgers on a barbecue grill he made for $1.50 from an old steel boiler bottom. Joe Wertz entertains six young friends. "People with young ideas are very Important," he says. "At my age it's so easy to flop mentally." Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Pottery making is Joe's greatest accomplishment. A perfectionist, he frequently makes 25 or 30 tries before arriving at a piece that satisfies him. The best rejects he may give away to friends, but most he destroys. Jeanne Wertz assists occassionally, but spends more time at weaving and silversmithing. Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Outtake from Young Retirement photo essay, 1957. Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. The whole family spends much of life in, on or near the water. One of Cook's first purchases was a 21-foot speedboat for outings and water-skiing. Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Six-year-old daughter Suzie, who learned to swim at the age of 4, is about to jump from her father's shoulders into the Gulf at a Sarasota key. Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Baseball-playing sons, Jim, 13 (left) and Tommy, 9, (center), belong to Sarasota Bank team. Little league occupies the family from May to July. Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Allen Cook and wife Mildred applaud as son Jimmy, playing center field, catches long fly. Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Outtake from Young Retirement photo essay, 1957. Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Outtake from Young Retirement photo essay, 1957. Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Warren Rice fishes while partner Olin, their families and two business associates watch. One accomplishment on outing was to discuss business contract at leisure. Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Supervising his sons, Dobson looks as Gerry, 22 (left), and Geoffrey, 18, hang window frames in quarters being put up for nursery worker. Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Bruff Olin checks up on painter doing a 93-foot-long sign his company put up off sand bar in Gulf of Mexico. Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Singing in church, Dobson (center) holds hymnal with wife Pat at nondenominational services held at neighbor's studio by members of community. Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. A satisfying luxury of semiretirement is enjoyed by Dobson, who usually spends 45 minutes each day in his "mosquito cage" on an after-lunch nap—and unheard-of squandering of time in his preretirement days. 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