markaid · Aug 13, 2026

A few methods that actually work:Google Street View history. In Street View, there is a clock icon that lets you step back through historical imagery. For most US streets Google has images going back to around 2007-2009. You can literally watch a building get demolished and replaced. This is the most direct method for recent changes.Sanborn fire insurance maps. Libraries often have digitized Sanborn maps going back to the late 1800s through the 1950s. These show every building on a block with its use, construction material, and footprint. The University of Florida and many county libraries have these accessible online for Florida locations.Historic aerials. historicaerials.com has USGS aerial photography from the 1940s onward for much of the US. You can compare decades at the same location. Useful for seeing what existed before Google's cameras.Old newspaper archives. If the business was notable enough, local papers covered its closing or demolition. Chronicling America (Library of Congress) and local library newspaper archives are searchable by location and year.County property appraiser records. In Florida, county property appraiser sites have parcel history going back decades. The parcel history often lists previous owners and use classifications, which can point you toward what type of business or structure was there.The building itself sometimes tells you. Old signs painted on brick walls — ghost signs — often survive under layers of paint. A different facade material patched into an older wall, or a floor plan that does not match the current tenant, can be clues worth following.

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