![]() Of course, a few places might be “frozen in time” and might look very much the way they do now, but these would likely be sparsely scattered exceptions.Īssuming that civilization does not destroy itself or lapse into a long period of stagnation and decay, future aesthetics created with the use of advanced technology could be quite remarkable and astounding to people of our time, just as skyscrapers and automobiles would definitely shock someone living in the Middle Ages. What can we say about all these changes over time? I think it’s safe to say that if we were to travel 100 years into the future, we would see a lot of strange shapes and very little that we would recognize as familiar. Washington DC: Center Market, now Convention Hall. It seemed to go on and on and on, into the night. Some flashed, others sparkled–gas stations, discount stores, fast food places, and everything else. I remember going by this very spot at night, taking in the endless panorama of animated, colorful neon signs. Jean Shepherd claimed that driving down Route 22 was “a surreal experience”, and it kind of was–especially if you’re a little kid like me sitting in the back seat of a ’62 Mercury Comet. Route 22 in Union NJ was considered the ultimate “slob road”–a never-ending forest of signs, lights, traffic, and visual clutter. More “roadside squalor” as the caption describes it, this time on Route 46 in Saddle Brook NJ.Īfter “a clamor for legislation to save the landscape”, do things look any better after 60 years? The signage is more boring and plain, but that’s about it. ![]() You can join the fun by finding an old photo online or in a book and then looking up the street view on Google. But I’ve also included some notable pictures from other areas of the country. I’m focusing on the New Jersey/New York area because I grew up here and it’s easier for me to orient myself to locations I’m somewhat familiar with. Many photos of this type have no specific location or address listed, so you have to look for little clues and use your own knowledge and memories to guide you. It’s amazing how much things have changed over the decades. White Tower (with “curb service”), Sunoco–all green space now.įinding these “after” views is not as easy as you think. It definitely had a character all its own, which may be appreciated now more than it was then. Almost to the point where someone might miss seeing this 1950s-60s “grubble” (as New York mayor Ed Koch used to refer to this kind of haphazard roadside development, with its accompanying vivid neon signage). Well, there’s an eternal saying, “This too shall pass”, and passed it has, much of it. Muckraker books like God’s Own Junkyardwere written telling us how bad all this was. When I was growing up, highway scenes like the one above were quite common, and widely regarded as ugly, tasteless, tacky–a blight on the landscape. And thanks to that wondrous bit of technology known as Google Street Views, we can now see how things have (and haven’t) changed over the decades. So I decided to create this second post, which shows many interesting old scenes that I have collected over the years. ![]() While putting together my recent post ( How The 21st Century Is Replacing the 20th), I found a number of other photos that I was thinking of including, but they didn’t seem to fit. Admiral Wilson Boulevard (Route 30) and Baird Boulevard, Camden NJ
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