A Walk Down Memory Lane: 16 Photos of School Lunches From the 1970s

Daniel Bonfiglio Published 10/29/2024 in wow

For as long as schools have served lunches, those lunches have been completely and totally awful.

But food aside, lunch time is one of high school's greatest joys, and everyone has fond memories of eating lunch together with their best friends in the cafeteria.

Even when President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Child Nutrition Act of 1966, forcing all school lunches to be at least a little bit healthy, lunch time prevailed!

Here are 16 greasy photos of what eating school lunch looked like in the 1970s.

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1.
“My mom and I eating school lunch, 1972.”
2.
Photo of a school lunch in the 70s.
3.
“High school lunch, late 70s. My mom and her friends.”
4.
5.
Catholic School BBQ, Louisiana, 1970’s.
6.
The 1975 Franklin Delano Roosevelt High School lunchroom.
7.
Continued.
8.
Continued.
9.
Continued.
10.
Continued.
11.
Continued.
12.
13.
“My lunchbox from elementary school in the late 70s.”
14.
Fountain Square in downtown Cincinnati. School class takes a lunch break, 1973. Photograph by Tom Hubbard.
15.
70s Snack Packs for school lunches.

1.
“My mom and I eating school lunch, 1972.”
2.
Photo of a school lunch in the 70s.
3.
“High school lunch, late 70s. My mom and her friends.”
4.
5.
Catholic School BBQ, Louisiana, 1970’s.
6.
The 1975 Franklin Delano Roosevelt High School lunchroom.
7.
Continued.
8.
Continued.
9.
Continued.
10.
Continued.
11.
Continued.
12.
13.
“My lunchbox from elementary school in the late 70s.”
14.
Fountain Square in downtown Cincinnati. School class takes a lunch break, 1973. Photograph by Tom Hubbard.
15.
70s Snack Packs for school lunches.