In the latter half of the 20th century, while many things were much worse than they are today, it was genuinely possible to support a family on a single minimum-wage job in many parts of the country.

Now, that doesn't mean that everyone used the extra time for civic participation, but when you compare that to today, when far too many people have to work two or three jobs per adult just to keep the lights on, I think it's fair to say that there was more free time.