Professions that are Vanishing

Telephone booths. Drive in theaters. Tea room restaurants in department stores.

Many of these are still jobs in the USA. I rode in an elevator with an operator in NYC last week. My uncle is a Lector. I work part time as a seamstress and know of many full time seamstresses. A chimney sweep was at our house last fall. And in Oregon, it is required that an attendant pumps your gas, etc.

Thanks for the feedback everyone! Yes as you have pointed out some of these professions on this list do in fact still exist although they are more scarce these days. An interesting subject for reminiscence! We will add some of your other suggestions in the comments to the list.

I think my residents will enjoy talking about this past/former jobs - but I know in the Dallas area there are still some people who have a chimney sweep business - and they tend to be in high demand as there are so few, but a lot of people have fire places and chimneys that need to be cleaned once a year or so. Also on seamstress - I think that one still applies but just as a tailor/alterations - I know several by me will also custom sew an article of clothing.

Hi, just to add FYI. I live in Adelaide Hills and there are a quite few chimney sweepers as most houses are using open or combustion fire place. I lived in Sydney, Bendigo, Canberra, Sunshine Coast and this is the first time to use a combustion fire place and gas from a gus bottle. I would like to know whether other places in rural Australia use the fire place or gas bottle. Thanks, Satomi.

In the UK some of these are still going. We still have the milkman, switchboard operator, seamstress, chimney sweep, radio actors, footman and governess. The last 2 mainly working with royalty or very high class families.
Very interesting subject though that will be great to do with my residents.

Great stuff.brought back memories for me......we use to get bottle milk at school for recess. Pink.brown.yellow. those were the days.

All good subjects for our reminiscing time. Golly, it was only 20 years ago at my wee(no pun intended) country cottage that I had an outside dunny with a nightman emptying it once a week. Thank the gods for septic toilets.

Windmill mechanics are a dying breed. Nippers working on railway gangs and firemen on the railway. What about the men who would collect and empty the dunny cans in everyones backyard thunderbox?

Thank you Wendy; feedback is always welcome!I will add it to the quiz.

Shoe shine boys.- ( Men/boys who polished and shined your work shoes) Paper boys - (stood on the corners and sold the afternoon paper)