One specific thing i was curious about is, was circumcised even remotely as popular then as it is today, and how was it viewed.
There was no circumcision in the U.S. until some in the early 20th century, then nearly universal starting in the 1950s.
As far as that goes, the inner foreskin is self-cleansing. For health reasons there's no need to do anything with it. (You don't wash your self-cleansing eyeballs.) But for hygiene -- like, you're about to get a blowjob -- then a water rinse is all that's needed.