Throwback Thursday: Five Vintage Photos of Summer in Boston

Summer in the city is really hot.

Heavy air, stifling apartments, and sizzling streets are to be expected, but if it’s any consolation, Bostonians have been adept at beating the heat for years.

Before the cooling fountains on the Greenway or the lifeguarded beach on Spectacle Island, (formerly a heaping pile of trash) city dwellers opted to take a dip near the North End Park and head to the beaches of South Boston. Here, check out five vintage photos of summer in Boston.

1. Swimmers stage a photoshoot along a South Boston beach in 1920.

Photograph by Leslie Jones via the Boston Public Library/Creative Commons

2. Throngs of splashers pose for a photo near North End Park.

Photograph by Leslie Jones via the Boston Public Library/Creative Commons

3. A gentleman makes himself comfortable in a bird bath.

Photograph by Leslie Jones via the Boston Public Library/Creative Commons

4. These ladies entered a swimming competition in the Charles in 1919.

Photograph by Leslie Jones via the Boston Public Library/Creative Commons

5. Children cool off in the waters near Castle Island in 1930.

Photograph by Leslie Jones via the Boston Public Library/Creative Commons