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 Replies: 14 / Views: 2,536 |
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Rest in Peace
United States
5375 Posts |
Like forts or habitations long since destroyed, no longer existing historic sites, and the like. Is there a way to find this on the internet? Any experiences?
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Rest in Peace
United States
2668 Posts |
One of the advantages of ground penetrating radar.
Old maps.
Roads that seem to lead to nowhere.
Talk up the locals.
Follow the fire trucks.
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Moderator
 United States
6563 Posts |
Find old town pictures. Or better yet find early 1900's aerial photos and figure out what's not there anymore
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Pillar of the Community
Australia
2830 Posts |
G'day, when researching family history, I have seen Gazetteers which purport to include ALL place names, ancient as well as modern.
I have seen such lists in published form in libraries; as manuscripts in special collections; and I've seen a few on the 'net.
If you find one, then you'd hope to recognize which names have no present equivalent.
In Australia, each Police Force keeps such a list, sometimes called a "Locality Index", or "Place Names List". The handy thing is that each locality is listed by Police District, which enables the reader to quickly narrow her/his search.
Other than that, I'd go to the best library in the area, and ask to see their oldest atlas or maps.
Peter in Oz
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Rest in Peace
 United States
5375 Posts |
Hmm yeah, old maps seem to be the best bet....man I want to try this some day.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
5318 Posts |
I'd suggest Google Earth. It's pretty cool how sat photos can reveal outlines of structures and roads long invisible from the ground.
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
965 Posts |
All good suggestions, but I would start with the old map and photos, then once you've got an idea of where to look, then use Kurt's awesome suggestion of Google Earth to look at it more closely. I'd even suggest you look at maps pre-railroad days, and compare them to post-railroad maps and see if any towns "disappeared". There were some that ceased to exist once the railroad came to a nearby town, and these might make for excellent finds, although you would probably be looking for a needle in a haystack. But when you find something......  |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
527 Posts |
I usually hit the library, you can find all the historical photos, maps and even journals that will give you help.
I also talk to architectural firms that have been around for a long time. My father-in-law is a partner for one such firm, and gives me access to their archives. I have found many buildings this way.
Historical district organizations are also helpful.
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Rest in Peace
United States
2668 Posts |
GO made a funny? Also, under water behind dams. Quote:
.....When the Friant Dam was completed in 1944, the site of Millerton became inundated by the waters of Millerton Lake. In extreme droughts, when the reservoir shrinks, ruins of the original county seat can still be observed..... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millerton,_California |
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Moderator
United States
6563 Posts |
Quote:
GO made a funny? I've been known to be funny from time to time  But what in the world are you talking about  |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1840 Posts |
Do you have a local historical society? The one in my town has people there that would love to talk about this type of thing. You could also check out this publisher: http://www.arcadiapublishing.com/index.htmlThey publish books with historic pictures from American Cities and towns. |
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Rest in Peace
United States
5375 Posts |
Well I live in NJ, so ghost towns seem out of the question....
But I am sure there is still something...
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Rest in Peace
United States
2668 Posts |
Then you must mean from balloons and high buildings.  |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
580 Posts |
I had a metal detector when I was a kid. I didn't find much except a pocketful of change over time. I remember when my dad and I took it out to the San Jacinto Battleground site outside of Houston I had just started it up and was sweeping a picnic area when the park cops materialized out of nowhere and told me that metal detectors were illegal there!
I think they were afraid I was gonna find something totally sweet like a long rifle or Mexican gold coins. Or, they were worried that I was not gonna fill up the holes that I dug. Actually I do remember them saying that any artifacts found on the grounds were the property of the state and therefore would be theft if I removed them.
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Valued Member
United States
101 Posts |
mklpatrick,
If the park was also Federal land you could have lost your detector, dad lost his car, etc. Here in Ohio the "historical item" return to the State is a part of the free permit system and certain areas or whole parks are off limits. Michigan State parks are gettng really fussy about MD'ing as many are off limits.
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Replies: 14 / Views: 2,536 |
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Posted 06/25/2008 11:30 pm
