Before curbside waste collection became the norm, Americans were more resourceful with items that now would end up in landfills.
Reusing household items used to be commonplace in the 1800s, far before blue recycling bins arrived at the curb of American homes. People weren’t taught to separate garbage; they instinctively did.
Shirts became new items once they became worn. Fabrics were turned into quilts or rugs. The ragman came to purchase cloth to repurpose into paper. This practice was commonplace until the 1920s when Americans largely stopped reusing items.
