About

An Ordinary Day on June 25, 1950 June 25, 1950, was a Sunday. At the time, South Korea was much poorer and more rural than it is today, with radios and landline telephones being the primary means of communication for most households. Televisions, smartphones, and the internet did not exist. From early morning in Seoul and various regions, news of unusual military movements and combat began to spread, marking the start of the Korean War due to the North Korean invasion at dawn. People learned of the war through the radio or word of mouth. Schools were closed because it was Sunday, but as the war began, ordinary daily life rapidly collapsed. Many people began preparing to evacuate with their families or move in search of safety. Things that existed in the 1950s but have disappeared or are rarely used in 2026: 1. Trams (Seoul streetcars) 2. Gramophones 3. 78 RPM records 4. Typewriters 5. Telegrams 6. Hand-cranked telephones 7. Oil lamps 8. Briquette-based heating 9. Drawing water from wells for daily use 10. Cooking with firewood 11. Home garment making using sewing machines 12. Postal telegrams 13. Black and white film photography 14. Film cameras 15. Radio-centric mass entertainment 16. Paper atlases 17. Communication centered on handwritten letters 18. Wooden desks and chairs 19. Traditional pit latrines 20. Carts pulled by horses or oxen Things that did not exist in the 1950s but exist in 2026: 1. Smartphones 2. Internet 3. YouTube 4. KakaoTalk 5. Artificial Intelligence (AI) 6. Personal computers 7. Laptops 8. Tablets 9. Smartwatches 10. GPS navigation 11. High-speed rail (KTX) 12. Subways 13. Electric vehicles 14. Drones 15. 5G mobile communication 16. Online shopping 17. Streaming services 18. Digital cameras 19. 3D printers 20. Unmanned convenience stores