[skyhammer]

If your 20 amp breaker is tripping, going to a larger amp rating will only help if you have a large enough wire. #12 is only good to 20 amps, if you have #12 wire and bump up to a 30 amp breaker, all you will accomplish is melting the wire and possibly burning your house down.
If your home hasn't been rewired since 1954, you probably don't have plastic insulation on your wire and it will also probably just have a hot and ground without a neutral wire. All of this needs to be upgraded.
Wiring a house is technically pretty easy. A 200 amp box is usually runs $200 or so. But, you can't just replace a smaller rated box with a larger one and be good to go. You may need the power company to install a larger transformer on the pole to handle the increased load and you will need a new meter. You will also need to get a permit to get a larger rated box. Since your house is so old, building codes have changed and you may also have to change out your mast and run larger wire from you mast to the box to handle the larger load.
Never use a larger breaker than the wire size can handle.