Yes. I'm 50, and grew up before the common use of car seats for children. Children of all ages would commonly ride in the front seat, or even in the back of pickup trucks. Even today, only about half the states have rules specifying that the carseats must be installed in the rear: https://saferide4kids.com/car-seat-laws-by-state/
As a fun anecdote, my father grew up prior to the time that most cars even came with factory seat belts. Before taking a family trip to Alaska in the 50's, his mother read about them and demanded that her husband install them in the station wagon before the trip. So he bought straps and buckles of some sort from a hardware store, and bolted them on so that all 6 kids would have "seatbelts" for the trip.
Remember getting stuck with the "hump" in the middle of the floor? I guess it was only a problem if you have more than one sibling and your parents had rear-wheel drive.
Hmm, I know car seats weren't always as big a thing, but I think it's pretty rare these days for a 3 year old to be in the front seat. Am I the only one who would instinctively feel it was unsafe? I feel like this would have been obvious even before I had kids and was basically clueless about their safety.
Yes. Up to a few years ago, I would often see rear facing car seats in the passenger side. It makes it easier for the driver to reach out to the toddler.
