About PlaceWas
PlaceWas pins historical photographs to the exact spot they were taken. Pick a place, scroll through time, and watch it change — the closest thing to time travel.
How it works
Every photo on the map carries a year, a precise location, and — when known — the direction the camera faced. The timeline lets you slide through centuries of a city in seconds. Photos come from public archives and from visitors like you.
Help build the archive
Anyone can add a photo — an old family picture, a postcard, a scan from a local archive. Spotted something misplaced? Every photo has a “Suggest a correction” link for fixing the spot, the year, the direction, or the description. Contributors with an account get credit for every photo and accepted correction on their public profile.
Who's behind it
PlaceWas is made by Alen Radica. Questions, ideas, or photo collections that deserve a map? Write to alen.radica@gmail.com.
Other projects by the same maker
- 0lap.com — compare cars by specs, 0–100 times and top speed.
- RollWhat — random memes, facts and photos, one roll at a time.
- NoteTiles — free online sticky notes and to-do lists.
See also: browse by city · privacy policy