Compare Tempe maps through the decades with Historical Aerials
May 4, 2018, 7:45 PM | Updated: May 5, 2018, 6:00 pm
(City of Tempe Photo)
(City of Tempe Photo)
PHOENIX — Over the last 60 years, Tempe has blossomed from farmland to neighborhoods and suburbs.
The Nationwide Environmental Title Research, based in Tempe, displayed this transformation in its Historical Aerials interactive mapping project.
By using tools such as scrolling and spotlight on the left-hand side of the site, viewers can highlight specific areas in the state and compare. With the flashlight, one can view a small circle from a list of years within the grid of how the city looked in a different year.
By clicking the side tool, the two maps will appear side-by-side to directly show the difference between the years.
Between 1945 and 1960, the population increased from 5,000 to 24,897, according to Tempe’s website. Over the next 15 years, the population almost quadrupled, expanding to 93,822 people.
Today, more than 180,000 people live in Tempe.
To create an inclusive map consisting of several years overlaying each other, NETR had to add and match thousands of pictures, according to the DailyMail.
“Taking on this project is like eating an elephant,” NETR president Barry Perry told the site. “It’s just so huge because the process of doing this is no easy task.”
The DailyMail also includes Historical Aerials of cities including Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Manhattan and Boston.
Historical Aerials includes views around Arizona and the United States.
Perry wants to expand the project to include features such as building use and ownership history.
“(People) are used to Google Maps … we want to be able to do that historically,” Perry said.
