The average home today looks drastically different than the home many of us grew up in, or even our parents and grandparents did. As technology has advanced and our lives have changed, some useful (and not so useful) features have become extinct. Check out these 10 extinct features that used to be common in most homes.
Built-in ironing boards
Fold down ironing boards built into wall cabinets were super convenient back when ironing was a daily chore. Today, most clothing is wrinkle-resistant and more casual. Most people only iron for special occasions, so portable boards or steamers have replaced built-ins.
Bulky TV cabinets/entertainment centers
Older TVs were large and heavy. They needed a big wood cabinet to sit on that often covered half of a wall. Today’s slim TV screens can hang like a picture frame, so those large pieces of furniture look dated and take up too much space.
Milk doors
You may have seen a tiny door built into the kitchen or porch wall in early-mid 20th century houses. The milkman would unlock the outside cubby from the street and place fresh milk glass bottles into the house through the door.
Homeowners then opened the door from inside to retrieve the milk. Some families also used the doors for bread and eggs. Milk delivery, the milkman, and milk doors slowly faded away with fridges in every home and supermarkets.
Telephone niches
Have you seen telephone nooks built right into walls in some homes? They usually had a cute little shelf for the house phone and phone book.
Kids learned to balance on the floor with the long curly cord stretched around the corner so they could chat in privacy. Now everyone has mobile phones that never leave their side, so there is no need for a dedicated phone spot.
Formal living rooms
These formal living rooms had fancy couches, fragile decorations, and sometimes even plastic covers to keep things from getting ruined. People actually used them to show off their wealth and status.
Most families never used them much. Now people expect all rooms to be comfortable and functional, so open living spaces have replaced the rigid “guest only” living rooms.
Wallpaper in every room
You could once find wallpapers with old patterns and bright colors in nearly every room. But wallpaper removal took lot of time and effort, and styles quickly went out of fashion.
Paint is a quick and easy swap. Today, most people choose neutral paint, not bold and bright patterns like back then.
Fireplaces and chimneys
Back in the day, Fireplaces were the only way to heat a house. So every home had a fireplace and a chimney. But modern heating made them optional. Many newer homes skip fireplaces to save space and avoid messy ashes and chimney cleaning.
Root cellars
These underground rooms used earth insulation to keep food cool. People used them to store potatoes, apples, canned goods, and even wine.
Now that fresh produce is accessible year-round thanks to groceries and refrigerators, modern houses do not have root cellars.
Sleeping porches
Before fans and air conditioning, people escaped stuffy bedrooms by sleeping on screened porches in summertime. Breezes kept them cool and helped prevent illnesses like heatstroke.
Some doctors even recommended sleeping outside for “fresh air therapy” to help lung health. However, once homes had A/C, porches turned into lounging spaces instead.
Fancy crown molding and trim
Many older houses (like Victorian and early 20th-century homes) had fancy trims, carved details, ceiling medallions, and so on. It gave spaces an elegant and “rich” feeling.
Today, less is more. Since modern trends lean more towards clean lines, minimal clutter, and minimalist style, people don’t use this heavy décor anymore.
The following sources were consulted in the preparation of this article:
