Excellent post. Born in 1954, I was one of that final cohort to enjoy nearly unfettered ability to travel, unescorted, over perhaps a dozen square miles of territory at a very early age. I wrote of this in "Whence Fall Snowflakes" (graboyes.substack.com/p/whence-fall-sno…). My essay cited Jane Jacobs, whose "The Death and Life of Great American Cities," saw modernist architecture and urban planning as the silent killer of social trust and community. My post also described the Abernathy Boys, ages 6 and 10, who traveled on horseback, alone, from Oklahoma to New York City, where they met with their dad's friend, Teddy Roosevelt. From there, they ventured south to the White House, where President Taft introduced them to his Cabinet. Back in NYC, their father shipped the horses home by train, bought the boys a small car, and allowed them to drive, alone, back to Oklahoma. All along the way, they were effectively guarded by strangers.