New Sites Are There If You Just Look For Them

[GB_Amateur]

I tend not to get too excited, especially before I go out for a hunt.  This morning I was reviewing some of my recent sites with https://www.historicaerials.com when I stumbled upon some magic words on an older USGS topo -- "Drive-in Theater".  If that doesn't get your detecting mouth salivating then you're not a coin hunter.  Stay tuned.

Update:  Officer Murphy (the one the law was named after) pulled me over as I was getting ready to head down the driveway.  The garage door cable came off the pully and in the process of fixing that I've messed up even more....  Detecting adventure is going to have to wait.  Hopefully I get time tomorrow because they're predicting iffy weather for the next three days after that.

Update 2:  Garage door fixed, but too late to get in much detecting as I had evening plans.  But I did have time to scout out the spot.  Good news is that it's public property and thus accessible.  However, I think I'm going to need to be discrete as some might object to me hunting this spot, even though I can freely walk into and out of it (not having to climb fences).  I don't know exactly when the Drive-In closed.  I think it opened in 1955 and was closed before turn-of-21st Century, so ballpark 40 years in operation.  Unfortunately where the cars parked has been reworked (with fill) but the projector building location and hopefully concession stand and kiddie playground wasn't, at least it looks overgrown unlike the rest of the area.  Now, have others detected there?  Maybe back in the 90's but I suspect that in the last 20 years it's either been forgotten about or completely unknown to modern detectorists.  Even if it's been hunted, my experience is they usually leave a few crumbs for me!  I haven't decided when I'll go there, as I think it's going to be best for me to pick my spots when I won't be noticed, or at least if noticed, not hassled -- early mornings and late evenings during the long daylight months (I guess that includes now).  I will report what I find, especially if that includes pre-1965 coins.  There appears to have been about 10-15 year window when silver was in circulation there.  I'm optimistic.

[mn90403]

1 hour ago, GB_Amateur said:

I tend not to get too excited, especially before I go out for a hunt.  This morning I was reviewing some of my recent sites with https://www.historicaerials.com when I stumbled upon some magic words on an older USGS topo -- "Drive-in Theater".  If that doesn't get your detecting mouth salivating then you're not a coin hunter.  Stay tuned.

 

When you use Historic Aerials are you looking at the maps or the actual aerials?

When I look at the aerials it seems to be low resolution and the copyright mark  is there.  

[GB_Amateur]

1 hour ago, mn90403 said:

When you use Historic Aerials are you looking at the maps or the actual aerials?

I look at both.  In my area the website's aerial photos go back to the 1950's and the USGS maps back to right after turn of the century.  I flip back and forth, etc.  In particular the aerial photos are different in that some are taken when the foliage is thick (especially trees) and others in the winter months when the deciduous trees are bare.  These latter are way better in most cases.

As far as the resolution, it's not close to Google Maps/Earth, that's for sure.  But I can usually figure out where the buildings were, and that's what I'm most interested in typically.  I just live with their copyright, etc. lettering.  Of course they will sell you copies that don't have those superimposed.

 

 

[kac]

The copyright lettering reminds me of The Detectorists when they where looking at areas of a map where it had the watermark Google :)

One the things I look for is where fields gow back into forests. What was once active farmland and is now wooded lands or in some cases a school had been plopped in or a park. If your in the woods itself you can look for the smaller trees and will notice larger ones as the older wooded areas.