Photographs of America’s Children From the 1940s by John Vachon

John Vachon was a photographer for the Office of War Information (OWI) from 1942-1943, before serving in the army until 1945. He later became a staff photographer at both Life and Look magazine.

Vachon’s work for the OWI led him and several other photographers around the country to capture what everyday life was like for millions of Americans. A small percentage of these photographs were in color, but the majority of Vachon were in black and white, capturing the faces of adults and children living their lives while an increasing number of brothers and sons went off to war.

(via Library of Congress)