My mother, God rest her soul, was born in the 1920’s, in the south. It would have never occurred to her and her sister to work out in the sun without wide-brimmed hats and long sleeves, especially since they were redheads. They knew nothing of skin cancer, but ivory skin and NO freckles, were the desired outcomes.
Maybe not in the South in the good old USA; I'm talking about aristos in the UK & Europe, actors and actresses in most nations, and the upper classes here too, from colder climes.
Me? I always thought that laying on a sandy towel on a beach, or some other place, being hot & sweating...to "get a tan", was boring, stupid, and not for me.
Your mother and Aunt were smart girls!