Boomer here. An exercise for those who wonder: look at historical tuition + fees costs and the minimum wage at that time. As I recall, a summer of 40 hours per

Boomer here. An exercise for those who wonder: look at historical tuition + fees costs and the minimum wage at that time. As I recall, a summer of 40 hours per week at minimum would more than cover tuition at the University of Virginia in 1970. So, no, the education wasn't free. But it was a lot more affordable.