Great tribute, Williamsmith. I can muster up a bit of nostalgia myself, remembering my next-door best friends's father supporting the family nicely delivering Drake's Cakes. My other best friend's dad was a carpenter who supported 9 kids. Every time another kid came along, he simply divided a bedroom. Then another kid would come and he'd put in a bunk bed. Those rooms were as neat as a pin, even though they were no bigger than a prison cell, furnished like an army barrack. I adored that family, and admired them profusely.
You could fit 3 of our little cookie-cutter Cape Cods into one of today's McMansions, but they were homey, and usually populated 24/7 by our moms.
Of course, when my DH gets all nostalgic, I remind him that both his mother and mine got sideswiped by life when they lost their husbands and financial support, but that was one flaw in the system that has worked itself out.
Who knows what the future will bring for people with grit, tradesman's skills rather than intellectual hubris, a strong work ethic and devotion to their families. You can't go home again, as they say.