Can I find the exact location of this 1950s photo of someone's nan? [GEO DETECTIVE #14]
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 16 มี.ค. 2022
- The geo detective series continues with this corker sent in by Aksel, who along with the rest of his family would love to know where this picture of his grandmother was taken. All we know is that she was holidaying in the united states, and with limited information in the image, I had a feeling this one might be a slog. I wasn't wrong..
Big shout out to editor Joe who did a cracking job with this on his debut.
![Custom Maps - "Dumb test for smart people" [PLAY ALONG]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/rbC59_uYbqc/mqdefault.jpg)
![[LIVE] : ONE ลุมพินี 66 วันนี้!! คู่เอก "ก้องชัย vs อัคราม"](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/j4uI5Uy8mWQ/mqdefault.jpg)
Let me know what you thought of this episode in the comments, and don't forget to give the video a like if you enjoyed it!
Hey Tom! Just letting you know that personally, I don't think going to Facebook is cheating (unless you went to a random group and asked something like "does anyone knows where this is from?"). You did the work to figure out the photo was taken in Tucson and given that the photo was old and there were little to no online resources to back you up, it only makes sense to take that line of action. Anyway, great job and awesome video! Cheers!
Is there a way I could get a copy of the photo to play around with?
I like this format 😊👍🏼
I think the fb group thing would be better done after pin pointing a location, then you have their confirmation. I think that's more or less the case in this episode, so I don't mind it.
Credit to: Paul Wetzel, he commented:
"Looks like Camelback Mountain in Phoenix, AZ at first glance. I grew up right there, and there were a ton of citrus orchards in the area."
I thought it would be worth checking out
I think consulting with locals gives the investigation a kind of a "cold cases" vibe and i personally loved it. I don't think it is classified as cheating.
Yeah I think it's okay for ones where the location isn't "known" by the challenge giver.
When its a cold case yes, but not when still working it out yourself.
@@murderboytje tbf he'd narrowed it down to a fairly tight circle within Tucson before he asked the FB group.
definitely cheating. No different from asking youtube for help.
Agreed! It’s all about using the resources he has!
Hey, grandson Aksel here.
That was a really enjoyable search! Really didn't think it could be Tucson! After looking at this, I think it has to be taken in the 1950's, considering she (Else Waage) was born in 1923 in rural western Norway, and looks young. She didn't immigrate to the US but lived there for some time to work as a nurse, and moved back to Oslo, Norway in the 1960's where she had two kids.
Back in the late 40's/early 50's Norway was a poor country, and the only viable option for women to move out of the rural villages was to become a nurse, being the only free education.
Wow amazing for her to go somewhere as far as Tucson back in those days! I wonder who she was traveling with and who took the picture!
... my first thought was she's Norwegian/Scandinavian, maybe Finnish? It's the upturned nose and open expression. Your grandma was a handsome woman... not helping to find the location 😒
Did she eventually leave her home in Tucson, Arizona for some California grass?
This is awesome to hear!
Aksels comment needs to be pinned.
@@OttoIncandenza Those days tuberculosis patients were encouraged to move to dry places. In The Bells of St. Mary's movie the nun is sent to Arizona to recover at the end of the movie, leaving behind the new school she helped build, it is a classic movie from 1945.
I made it out right away. The sign reads PARK MOTEL and this was located at 3001 South 4th Avenue in Tucson. The building is still there but not a motel. His grandmother is standing at the southernmost point of South 4th Avenue where it meets E. Benson Hwy (the old hwy). If you look closely under the tree in the photo you will see the bottom of a building with small bricks. That building is still there!
Yeah the tough part is that the area it's in was developed prior to the interstate going through. The tall signs and motel suggest a road with a lot of traffic, which the road had before the highway made it a backwater. A different time in America. Take the wife into town, stay at the motel, get some dinner, and walk on over to the Greyhound Park and bet on the dog races.
I also thought it said Park motel.
You're bang on there. In the picture you can see the shadow of what was possibly a stop sign at the junction. I think he was quite a way off.
That's some incredible detective work right there ! It's even got that slight hump in the road !
I like the fact that you can see how the weather is changing by looking at his laptop's taskbar. It begins with "partly sunny", then goes to "mostly cloudy" and then to "raining now". Couldn't be more english than that!
can't believe I was stuck indoors on a partly sunny day 😭
Next level GeoGuessing: you get 3 weather notifications over 3 hours and have to pinpoint the location :-)
@@TripleDDDD That reminds me of searching for Shia Labeouf's flag. It's one of the most glorious search ventures in the history of human kind. And the only clue was a sky above the flag. :)
More about it on the channel Internet Historian. The video is called: Capture the Flag | He Will Not Divide Us
@@damyr ah, yeah I remember, glorious game from the get go.
@@GeoWizard Yeah, I saw the partly sunny thing and said to myself, "Tom should be outside, taking advantage of that rare event!"
something you might want to try with old photos is to look at city directories from that time, I took a look at the one for tuscon in the 50's (all public access online) and they have addresses for all the motels in the city, I'm not sure which one is in the picture but it's probably not too challenging to narrow it down from there.
big wrinkles on your brain
@@thomaswhite8251 well, he's god, though...
In the 1955 telephone directory, I found a Park Motel at 3001 S 4th Avenue. Could this be a possibility?
@@ColdTunaFish It definitely looked like it said park motel to me when I first saw it.
Sanborn insurance maps too!
You should livestream one, and get all of us to work together to find a real obscure location.
this video is the sum of three days' searching. that'd be one long stream hahaha
@@Innuya Maybe not with a few hundred people searching
that sounds interesting, would definitely watch!
yeah there could be polls to decide where he narrows down the search to or where to search next!
would definitely watch
I don't think using the facebook group is cheating. The whole point of this series is playing detective to figure out where pictures are, right? Research and asking questions are definitely part of being a detective.
Totally agree!
The regular submissions of fans, where they know where it was taken, I think facebook groups are unnecessary. But these older ones where it is genuinely a mystery I think it's absolutely valid and part of the fun. Because he already has to have got it down to a tight area before reaching out to a local community group, and you never know what interesting tidbit of knowledge someone might have.
Yea, ands it's not that probable that anyone will know anyways
I think the crucial thing is having enough information before submitting. In this case, Tom already knew the country, state, city, and even a rough area/direction he should be searching in. Had he not known basically anything apart from it being US, I think it would be cheating, to gain that much information from other people. When he already has basically everything and is just trying to narrow things down, I'd say it's acceptable - he had to figure out the city to even know which Facebook group to ask.
Yeah for the mistery ones everything should be allowed. It would be sad not to solve that family mistery just because you had to uphold some arbitrary rules.
I know you're seeing this dear editor, and let me tell you, you've done a great job by not letting the entire vibe of a Tom video change
Yep, wanted to say the same. Excellent job, it felt just right
Yeah, I wouldn't even have guessed. It's flawless.
Duesken2!! the geolegend lol
These kind of casual photos are a treasure. Of all the people I've lost it's not the weddings or the graduations I wish I had more of, but pictures of them as they were to remember them by.
Plus she got that 60s drip, the dark colors and dungarees, it's a look.
AAAAAAHHHHH!!!! PAAAAAIIIINNNN!!!!!!
I broke my hand yesterday because of the hate comments I get all the time. I was so angry that I punched a hole in my computer. Please don't hate me, dear sam
The best thing about looking at old photos is how they're always perfectly dressed for the era they're in.
The fuck is a 60's drip
absolute sort and all.
@@AxxLAfriku you good?
Using this video to pass a message to you Tom.
I used to be a big-time hiker, backpacker and hitchhiking traveler. Over the passed few years, I slowly fell into depression and actually didn't go for a hike in years ! Discovering your channel made me remember how happy I was before and how simple it can be.
Anyway, I'm happy to announce that, thanks to you, tomorrow I'll go on my very first hike in over 5 years. I couldn't be more excited and thankful to you mate ! Keep going on adventures and inspiring people. What a great gift you have !
How did it go?
@@RaFGuy Awesome ! I feel great and I actually have been on daily hikes since then. Small ones, around 6 to 8km, but still ! Gonna do 12km tomorrow.
@@nicolaslhomme9680 Are the hikes still going strong?
When I lived in Tucson in the mid-70s, the main avenues were lined with Seville orange trees (also known as “sour orange”). They were purely decorative, but looked like regular oranges. If you tried eating one, you’d get an incredibly sour taste and a disappointed feeling. They looked a lot like the tree in that photo of Grandma, being at the edge of the road like that. Really nice sleuthing on this video! I enjoyed it a lot.
Clearly nobody in South Tucson had read the Paddington Bear books, or surely they would have turned all those oranges into marmalade...
Seville Oranges are used for making marmalade.
So, not purely decorative after all. Good to know! Mmmarmalade.
Why not just use regular orange trees lol give the locals some free snacks
@@stumccabe And Sour Orange pie - something we have to fake up north.
One thing about drawing the lines and why it doen't work especially with old photos like this is because the width of the lens used to take the photos and aspect ratio would be completely different to the Google Street View camera, especially if the camera is zoomed and if the photo is taken on any kind of angle that's not front on down a road
that wouldnt make a difference if youre drawing the lines correctly. if you draw a line vertically on a photograph, any two features in that photograph that line up on that line must, by definition, be in line with where the photo was taken. no matter what level of zoom or what type of lens is used. even a fisheye lens cant magically move an object out from behind another object.
a different lense might make a distant object look larger or smaller in compariosn to the foreground, but it cant move its position relative to the foreground
To think I started to worry that today would be another monotonous Thursday at work. Thank you for blessing us Tom!
same im in the office watching it right now :D
Same here , just on a break watching this .
Same lol
What a police detective would do, is to start asking the right people about their case.
You basically did this in the online version with a Facebook group, which in my opinion makes it more like a „Detective“ work for the GeoDetective series
I don't know about everyone else but I love this change to the series. Photo's people send in of their families that they genuinely don't know about is both fascinating and rewarding. Keep up the great work!
I personally prefer the old GeoDetective format, but this one is awesome too!
I recognized that mountain range immediately. Never expected to see my hometown in one of these videos!
I recognized it straight away too :)
@@mikotondria no you didnt
@@nnobud7703 why would you say that?…
@@l.j.9031 tears
@@nnobud7703 it’s pretty easy to recognize when you see it every day
I believe the photo was taken somewhere near the corner of north oracle road and west Roger road in Tucson. It’s my understanding that oracle road was one of the old highways going through Arizona before the interstates came through. Hence the motels. Just a guess 🤷🏻♂️
Yup!! This is it! I grew up under that exact mountain!
Pollo Feliz? Sure Gus Frings's centre of operations in a parallel universe.
My guess when I first saw the photo was North Oracle Rd. My parents grew up in Tucson in the 50s and 60s. I moved there to go to UA and stayed and worked there after in an office near Oracle and Wetmore by the Tucson Mall. The photo must have been taken in that area somewhere, but the mountain views on street view are blocked by so much buildup, and everything has changed so much, it's very hard to determine exactly. I thought the motel sign said "Peach Motel", but that could be quite wrong.
I love these videos. :) finding out where a picture is taken can tap into various fields on knowledge. Botany, language, fashion, climate, common sense. I love it.
Especially the common sense part.
I don't mind the Facebook question. I don't think it is cheating specially after you already know it was in Tucson and given the fact that nobody really knows where the photo was taken. It is part of the investigation work and I wouldn't want it to constrain you on even harder challenges.
Exactly like I see these submissions as less of a challenge of how close can he get using his skills, but instead genuinely finding accurate information for the person. Like knowing the exact spot of this photo being taken could be very meaningful for the person, so closing off avenues that could be fruitful (no word play on the photo intended haha) for the sake of the challenge then isn't as in the spirit of that.
Yeah, especially considering how he was only able to utilize Facebook after spending a lot of time working hard toward finding Tucson.
We might've had a rough start with the first 2 specials but I really do like this old timey photo concept and think this episode got us on the right track. I hope to see more!
This is my favourite 'Geo Detective' video yet, because the investigation spans time in a really enjoyable way. It's much more interesting looking for evidence of a water tower or long forgotten motel than looking at shapes of church windows etc, in my opinion. Though it might be harder, I think the final product, regardless of whether you find the exact spot, is much more rewarding to watch.
The location is 2010 S 4th Ave. The Motel was called the Park Motel and is now the Eldorado restaurant. The orange tree is still there, behind a wall. Edit: or is it?
That was my idea to. The only motel in the yellow pages of the 1950s that starts with a P or an F and fits would be the "Park Motel". Google does not allow me to post a link (my comment disapears almost directly) so look for yourself by searching "Arizona - White Pages and Yellow Pages - Tucson - July 1955 thru February 1956", and check page 187
what about the road curving back and forth?
that's right.
@@emlodnaor the road would have changed quite a bit since they made it into a highway I imagine. The cross street to the right does match the picture.
I think it’s a bit further south than that, the Park Motel was at 3001 S 4th Ave according to a 1955 white pages, so it would have to be south of there since the mountains are to the north
As someone who went to the University of Arizona in Tucson, I could almost instantly tell that was Tucson. And I agree, it almost assuredly is on Oracle Avenue between Drachmann and Miracle Mile. That’s a very historic area of town and the old entrance onto downtown and the UofA and where most motels would be located, and where still a few historical hotels are still located.
Born and raised in Tucson and immediately that's where I thought as well!
Nope according to others it’s definitely outside El Camino Motel at the very start of S Fourth Ave (Benson Hwy)
@@deankoorey5871 I read that thread and it’s plausible, but I still don’t see it as a certainty. The mountain appears to be at the wrong angle based on its contours and I still don’t think the sign says “park motel”. But fourth Avenue would also be a contender.
The size of mountain is an illusion based on probably a longer mm focal length camera vs wider angle google car which results in things like mountains looking closer. Another comment has identified the brickwork, plus the trees are actually still there. Not to mention the bend/dip of the road and shadow of the sign indicating an intersection, it’s got a lot going for it! Anyway, all good fun! 😎👍🏾
@@deankoorey5871 Not the size of the mountain. The angle of the mountain and the ridges with respect to the various peaks. It doesn’t seem to line up from that far to the east. The trees are not still there and wouldn’t still be there. Orange trees have a life of about 25 years. And orange and lemon trees are everywhere in Tucson so a new tree wouldn’t be shocking.
Here's a thought - the mountain in the background is called Pusch Peak, so I reckon Pusch Motel is quite a strong possibility for the motel's name.
I believe that is the Park Motel in the background and was located at 3001 S 4th Ave The bricks of the building behind the orange tree are of the El Camino Motel located at 4th Ave and Benson Hwy. This is way further south than his pin. I imagine they were traveling I-10 and stopped for the night at the El Camino Motel (confirmed the name has not changed since 1960) and took this photo in the morning before setting off again. Hope this helps.
You never cease to amaze me. Great job Tom, and a great job to the community for finding the exact spot at the El Camino Motel.
Tom, I love the new series! Please continue. I'm a Yank, but I really love your remarkable take on American culture. I recommend your channel to everyone I know. Although my kids are older than you are (I assume), I have developed a new love of physical geography because of you. Great work!
Loving this sub-series! The first episode was especially cool with all the investigative work that went on afterwards by the community, even if it was not a real place.
A lot more investigative work goes into these I think, especially because of the age of the photos/paintings, which is really cool. Getting to see the history of places like Tucson & Vegas is also really interesting.
5 minutes in to this video and my guess is somewhere in Southern Arizona
Update:
Im 16 minutes in and he said tuscon.. i about shit my pants because i am in tuscon right now. If this turns out to be the location i will personally drive to see this spot!
Update 2:
Ill drive down to this spot today and check it out. Never expected one of Tom's videos to show the location where i currently am haha!
Update 3:
I visited the approximate location and filmed this video!
th-cam.com/video/8Uj3oNeZPY0/w-d-xo.html
Film it 🎥
Oh yes, cool! Keep us updated!
wow damn, could you maybe show the picture to some locals? See if they recognize the Motel or something?
show us this location: "The location is 2010 S 4th Ave. The Motel was called the Park Motel and is now the Eldorado restaurant. The orange tree is still there, behind a wall."
@@surfexcel9178 th-cam.com/video/8Uj3oNeZPY0/w-d-xo.html
Ask and you shall receive!
Amazing work! I love love love this series!!!! And the straight line missions of course. This channel is awesome
This is my favourite video since the adventures. Really compelling stuff with the backstory and real history/people/personal mystery (i.e. just the location) where she was. Honestly I could watch hours of this and the suggestion below to do a live one and take help from commenters is also great!
As others have pointed out she is standing next to the now "El Camino Hotel" on 4th South Ave. The property at 3001-3007 north of the spot is 100% a repurposed motel as well.
Its amazing how patient you are in searching days for just one spot, I would've give up in half an hour. Also, the editing of your new editor was really nice
Tom, you have stumbled upon a winning format. If anyone is interested in geography, history, art, culture, geology, botany and the general theme of sleuthing, then this is the one stop shop. I learnt so much random “stuff” from all three of these challenges. It’s the visual equivalent of a Wikipedia knowledge spiral. Don’t drop the artistic stuff, while ever there’s a possibility it’s not entirely fictitious. Serious art critics have spent decades patching together the background landscape behind the Mona Lisa, for example. Some of the weird rock formations in Salvador Dali have been found as well, but you probably need more biographical info for that.
really enjoyed this episode, very glad to know there's more coming like this. Loving the 'detective' angle of these, piecing together clues, research etc... I can't be the only one thinking that its only a matter of time before he's contacted by MI9 to locate photos right?
Looks like Camelback Mountain in Phoenix, AZ at first glance. I grew up right there, and there were a ton of citrus orchards in the area.
More than likely. Looks like the left side of the mountain. Lived there for 10 years and delivered furniture throughout paradise valley and all over that mountain.
It’s DEFINITELY Tucson AZ! Look up a view of the Catalina mountains, the left most little mountain! I grew up there!
AZ Was my first thought but also it may be route 66
@@axel8grease My first guess was prior to watching, just a guess from the pic. Should have known since i delivered things in Tucson for 2 years also.
Awesome Awesome Awesome video! I always really Enjoy all your videos, but especially these GEO Detective ones. Sorta Dumb but it was even more so today, cuz i actually live in Pahrump Nevada near Vegas, so it was cool you were over my head for a minute :-)
These are your absolute favourite videos that i enjoy. Best series!
Bloody love this series Tom. Don't apologise for trying to be so precise with it either as I guess like myself people enjoy your thoroughness
Really impressive man. I would've given up ten times already. also props to the editor, didn't feel any different than usual!
Kudos to the new editor. Great work, a LOT of fun to see you intervening and interacting via screen text, I laughed, and great to have the full-screen Tom face in crucial "Eureka" moments and the like, which makes time slow down, creating a great effect. Keep it up !
Tom, I think you could do this in stages. First, slog alone to where you think you've given it all you had, then open it to groups of local people like on Facebook until they can't help you anymore, then to a larger crowd like on the TH-cam comments ... and then record in your scoring system how many circles you've had to reach out to to get to which accuracy. I think that'd both shush any accusations of cheating while aiming at the highest accuracy and confidence possible on the final guess.
Anyways, great fun again !
It could be kind of like the straight line mission grading system, gold, platinum etc
Love this! I live in New Mexico and loved seeing you search my part of the world!
I, for one, really like these videos. Love the historical part and the detective work to find the spot. Keep them coming!
I thought the sign might say "Park Motel" so I googled that and found an eBay listing of a Postcard depicting a Park Motel in Tucson, AZ. The picture of the post card does not show the sign and I can't be sure if it actually is the right motel. But the Street View from the address printed on the back (3001 South 4th Avenue) looks like it might be the one.
That's awesome! I don't mind there being some amount of collaboration on these things, whether it's with Facebook groups or commenters.
That was my idea to. The only motel in the yellow pages of the 1950s that starts with a P or an F and fits would be the "Park Motel". Google does not allow me to post a link (my comment disapears almost directly) so look for yourself by searching "Arizona - White Pages and Yellow Pages - Tucson - July 1955 thru February 1956", and to to page 187.
You are exactly right. In fact, she is standing right next to the 4th Avenue side of the El Camino Motel (which still stands today at address 297 E Benson Hwy, Tucson, AZ 85713). The bricks, now painted light green, are an exact match in pattern. Some of the bricks are wider than others in a very specific pattern. From this vantage point, the big water tower that stood at 3rd and Elm would've been visible way off in the distance. Park Motel would've been down on the right, just as shown in the photo. Just a bit further down is the Tucson Greyhound Park which was also there in the 1950s. By 1958, 4th Avenue had been widened to a four-lane road so this photo predates that.
I don't think asking locals is cheating at all, especially since you found out it was Tucson all by yourself. It gives the video even more of that "detective" vibe.
I enjoyed every second of that video. Great job Tom. Geo Detective
For me, the best section of the video was after you knew it was Tuscon! The fun bit is seeing you not giving up, and drilling down trying different techniques like the old aerial photo. As you expand your tools and tricks these could start getting really facinating I reckon! Keep up the top content!
Fairly new viewer here! I've binged the detective series and l love it. Can't wait for you to get back to the non special ones as well
I'm currently living in Tucson now and love seeing my hometown be the subject of all this mystery. I would be more than happy to spend a bit driving around town to all the locations people are suggesting and scout them out IRL to get a locals take on it. Somewhere on 4th Avenue would make sense to me as that is one of the older parts of our city and has/had many motels and the like on it. It might just be the focal length of the camera, but most of the locations people are suggesting on 4th feel too far south for me to confirm it, at least based on streetview alone.
The one that seems closest based on the mountains alone would be the person who suggested the corner of Oracle and Roger, so i might have a look there sometime in the next few days. I do think however the person who suggested that motel is the Park Motel is correct as the layout of the hotel based on the image matches historic images of the hotel, and also the fact that there is an orange tree roughly where the photo would have been taken, so if I have time I'll also have a look around there.
it's at 3180 S 4th
Following. Need to know lol
@@scladoffle2472 thanks dingus. Now I feel like a dingus, haha
I would say Oracle and Orange grove. Just cuz she's looking at the orange tree. And it seems close to Pusch Ridge In the northern part of Tucson. But it may be Oracle and Grant... Now that i watched video more it seems north central Tucson
El Camino motel looking towards 3007 S 4th ave
I never watch almost-20-second-long unskippable ads before videos, I refuse. I have just watched one for this though! Love these!
I absolutely love your tenacity. As a patreon sub, I am starting to understand where it's come from via your London to Budapest series but it's still impressive, man - I wish I had your commitment to stuff like this
For this series I really think asking around in facebook groups and such is completely fine. When you consider things changing with time, not necessarily having a good collection of photos from that time period, camera differences etc, etc, asking people from these places really might just be the only possible way to determine the exact location sometimes.
What is crazy about this is I am from Tucson and I thought the mountain looked familiar. Oracle used to be a two lane road so I think you are close. The road also used to be full of hotels and motels. Also stone ave.
Really enjoyed this one. I think comparing historical data/images with the present adds a whole new layer to it. Really cool/interesting stuff!
These videos are fantastic. Thanks for doing them.
There’s a car guy on TH-cam who appears on the late brake show and he wanted to find a hotel that his Grandads classic Mercedes was parked outside in the 60s I think it was . How can I send you the link ? I think it would be a good geo detective. It’s a white pyramid shaped hotel. He wants to drive there to recreate the photo btw
what is this channel name
@@TotalmenteNoob it was on , The Late Brake Show and episode was called rare barn find Mercedes W111
@@abcdef12399 yeah but I don’t know his email address 😆
Not being rude but surely that would be too easy?
@@7p7m7 if you watch the said video , it’s not that straight forward as there’s no signage or any indication of a country . The hotel might not even exist anymore
I am fairly certain I know exactly where that is based on the mountain. I'll have a watch!
did you get it?
up
Up
Close! The mountain looks very similar to Camelback mountain in Phoenix, AZ. But the direction of the roads don't quite add up so tuscon would've been my 2nd guess based off the look of the mountain and the citrus tree/dirt
El Camino motel looking towards 3007 S 4th ave
dude your music is so good, it makes me so nostalgic to the walking across Wales series, seriously good stuff dude! 🔥
Congrats on finally getting an editor! More time for adventures and geo wizardry!
If you look at 2:17 you can see a shadow. It might be a traffic sign which indicates that we are at an intersection. The road looks wide but is not build very well which could indicate that it is not directly in the city centre or might not be on the main road.
also i think asking on facebook groups and random pages isnt cheating. Unless your posting HEY where exactly is this photo. but theres definitely some information and questions you can get. i think what matters is if you are getting info or getting someone else to find it for you.
Tom, I bloody loved it.So much so that I shouted out of a moving car at a passer by saying politely, 'it's in the sweet zone, I think'
Keep doing it x
Wow, that was amazingly entertaining. The best part about these is when you get these crazy ideas like "searching areas where citrus trees can grow"
The motel is Park Motel. It was located on 2001 S 4th Ave. 👍
You can find it in the 1950s Tucson directory :)
I can tell you have an editor now (not to say you were doing a bad job on your own of course!)
Great job.
Because of the annoying music, which I could do without?
Love it! First geo-detective video I’ve seen and it’s great
I was born and raised in Tucson. This was so cool to watch. Really great video Tom!
Just an idea for helping narrow down locations like this in photos, most photography, certainly snaps like this would be done on a 35mm camera. It could be possible to work out by the size and scale of the mountains what the rough distance to the origin of the photo would be. That combined with your lining up on the geographic features could help really narrow down the area.
In the 1950s it was more common with medium format film then 35 mm. The aspect ratio of the photo looks more like 6x4.5 or something like that then 35 mm film.
“Get in!” count: 1
@19:00 let yourself to celebrate Tom. It feels good.
Great work Tom! Love the Geo Detective series and loved the the Wetherspoon series! I drive past the Wetherspoon in Guildford everyday and was embarrassed you got it within 5 seconds and I didn't even bloody recognise it! You either can geo guess or you can't I suppose!
Grew up in AZ and currently attending University in Tucson. Had a hunch it was AZ and once you discussed the orange trees I recognized the photo as possibly being the Catalina mountains!
I think I might have found it. Lat 32.2001717 Long -110.9685164 There's a motel there (Arizona Motel) that has similar architecture and there are features in the path to suggest there were once trees there. Not entirely sure but thought it might be worth a look.
It might be
Already found. Corner Benson and S Fourth Ave outside El Camino motel
El Camino motel looking towards 3007 S 4th ave
The weird thing is there sign behind the (Park?) motel is shaped like the state of Arizona, so my first thought was "Arizona Motel". The road would have to have been seriously flattened, though, and the motel sign replaced. Even the current one looks 50's-60s, although the city could have forced them to put in a shorter one.
Mate you just saved my thursday
Loving these, Tom. Great content.
I love this idea. I have spent quite a few hours tracking down the location of old photos, either ones that I took 20-30 years and forgot where, or old family photos, so I can geotag them in my photo library. It's quite addictive.
The Park Motel in Tucson was at 3001 S 4th Av so just south of that.
I imagine 1950s USA would have a business registry with information about the owners, name of the business etc. I would guess that the name and exact location of the motel is documented in an archive that may or may not have been digitized and made publicly available. Anyways I think querying facebook groups like in this scenario is fine if you have a specific concrete request.
in arizona every plot of land's ownership history is documented so if the name of the motel could be verified you should be able to find out which plot of land it was/is on
I’m a local to Tucson, was thinking this might be miracle mile as there are many hotels along there (even in the 1950’s) and that road runs east/west.. So happy to see the Tucson mountains in one of your geo detective episodes!
This is sooooo cool, as much as I enjoy the modern selfies, the old school photos are alot cooler again and give a special vibe as others have mentioned!
there could be a whole subreddit (and probably is) where you post pictures and the community finds its location.
Its called the picture game
r/whereisthis
r/wherewasthistaken
23:55 right next to tom... "camgirl public creampie" lmaooo
Love this challenge, great detective work! Want more of this!
Wow, I did not see that water tower on the photo! I got so excited when you found that old picture to compare to. This whole detective work is so cool!
Have you ever thought about using an AI upscaling program for low res/blurry images?
AI upscaling cannot add missing detail that was not there before, because the information is missing. It can only invent new detail to add in its place. The original image is the only thing you get
the problem with that is that an Ai updscaling program can add features not originally there...
@@vladchira521 They can be pretty good at deciphering blurry text, though.
@@vladchira521 AI may easily have the capability to make intelligent guesses.
Here's a video filmed at the approximate location the picture was taken.
th-cam.com/video/8Uj3oNeZPY0/w-d-xo.html
Had a heck of a time watching this, great work
Amazing! I clicked on the video because I immediately thought that was the southern view of Pusch Peak. It was interesting to see that confirmed and your process for finding the location.
i love the use of the facebook group! wouldn't classify it as cheating at all, especially with these special locations it's just cool to see you use any resources you can get your hands on :)
This for sure. If there isn't a known "right" answer, I think everything is fair game, after due diligence of course.
10:05 this is straight up cursed
Had no idea you used an editor for this video until you mentioned it. He nailed your style, bravo Joe.
Loved this episode! Keep them coming!
Let’s gooo
Sure!
I mean, detectives extracts information from other people for a living, so I don't think I would consider what you did as cheating. You'd already figured out that it was Tucson anyway.
Fascinating. Really interesting to follow your thought process.
As an Tucsonan, very good job on Oracle! Anywhere near Miracle Mile would have been my guess. Fantastic video, getting to watch you use landmarks I have fond memories of was quite the experience.
Hey Tom, this stuff is great but you don't need to keep trying new formations. The good old stuff is already really fun and I'm sure most of your subscribers including me are looking forward to them coming back. Take care!
I'm early :D
I've been really enjoying this series, and would like to make a suggestion of a similar series that combines your mission shenanigans with this series.
I think it would be really fun if you got people from the UK to send their photos, or videos, or maybe even just a description from different locations in the UK then you find out where they are and then you go and recreate the photo in a mission like video.
Then the people that submit them confirm how accurate it is.
Anyway, thanks for reading and look forward to the next video
Just to register my opinion. I love all of your Geo detective videos. I think the best videos come from the photos that you are most interested in be they historical or whatever