1960 Street scene in Jeddah
Saudi Arabia has seen an unprecedented wave of change and modernization sweep the kingdom, especially over the whole last century. Below is a collection of snapshots that were taken from the early 1900s and ending with the 1990s. It’s both fascinating and entertaining to see how far the whole region has come in a few short decades.
1900s
Construction of the Hejaz railroad, 1906
Laying the Hejaz railroad tracks near Tabuk, 1906
1910s
Camel caravan of pilgrims to Mecca, 1910
Medina: Central station in front of the west gate, 1914
Ruin city of al-Hijr, 1914
1920s
The Ka’aba in the 1920s
1930s
King Abdulaziz and the US Petrol Minister, laying the groundwork for the Saudi Arabian Oil Company (ARAMCO) 1934
Dammam: The first commercial oil well in Saudi Arabia, 1938
1940s
Entourage of King Abdulaziz, 1945
Royal bodyguards of Saudi Arabia, 1947
1950s
A group of people looking at an Aramco airplane after landing in Dhahran, 1950s
A view of the Ras Tanura Government Customs House, 1952
Shoppers strolling down King Saud Street in Al-Khobar, 1954
1960s
Car washing in Riyadh, 1960s
King Khalid Street in Khobar, 1960s
1970s
A Saudi family walking on the streets of Dammam, 1970s
Jeddah street view, 1970s
Women in Khobar, 1970s
1980s
Caravan Shopping Center in Jeddah, 1982
Jeddah rising, 1984
1990s
Aerial shot of Riyadh, 1990s
That’s one large sweep, from the beginning of the century where you see camels and a new railway being built, until the skyline starts to change fundamentally in the 1990s. Every country changes in 100 years but Saudi Arabia is a cut above many of them in terms of speed and innovation. At this rate, one can only imagine where the 21st century will take us.
