Oh really.
We didn't have a lot of technology, but then people were not overworked to death and were a lot happier.
What was the average life expectency?
How long was the average factory work day? How long was the average farm workday? (hint: damn near every waking hour.) Not overworked to death? Give me a break.
What happened when you got pneumonia? You died. What happened when you got tuberculosis? You died slowly. What happened if you got cancer? Well, they really didn't know about cancer much, and even if they had they wouldn't have been able to do anything about it, so you died. When a vicious little new strain of influenza swept around the world eighty years ago, millions died.
You seriously want to tell me that people were, in general, happier? I think your vision is being clouded by the pictures painted by those few people who actually had free leisure time to enjoy life.