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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Charlotte Hawes

1940s crowd photo 'shows time travel is real' as hipster snapped in sunglasses and hoodie

Time travel tends to be something that we only hear about in films, but an image that has been circling the internet since 2010 seems to put the theory to the test.

The picture in question was taken in 1941 at the reopening of the South Fork Bridge in Canada.

It was first made available to the public in 2004 when it was featured in the Barlorne-Pioneer Museum's exhibit "Their Past Lives Here", according to Snopes.

In the image, a 1940s crowd is stood watching the reopening with one man that stands out due to his clothing and accessories that seem far too modern for the time.

When the Canadian museum digitised the snap and placed it online in 2010, internet users soon spotted the 'time traveller' who stands out in the crowd.

The 'hipster time traveller' is seen wearing sunglasses and holding a camera (Virtual Museum)

He is sporting a dark t-shirt, sunglasses and a hooded zip jumper while holding a small portable camera.

Those around him are wearing tailored suits which were in fashion at the time.

The man can be seen wearing a printed T-shirt which bares the letter 'M' underneath a hooded jumper.

This type of t-shirt was often worn by sports teams of the period.

The emblem is of the Montreal Maroons, a hockey team that played in the National Hockey League between 1924-1938.

At the time, protective sunglasses were also available yet one item that sticks out the most is the small portable camera that the man is holding in his hands.

While many think that portable cameras were not invented until the 1980's, Kodak did in fact make several portable cameras that were available in 1941.

Several portable cameras were available in the 1940s (Kodak)

When the image began doing the rounds online, debates soon erupted on social media platform Reddit and traffic on the VMC website skyrocketed as many flocked to discuss the shocking picture.

On one thread, titled r/timetravellercaught, users were debating whether the man in the image had travelled back in time.

One user said: "Logically, I know it’s not a time traveler, but it’s really hard to remember that when I see this picture."

Another argued against the time traveller theory, stating: "There is a 1938 patent for these 'sunshades'. Not time traveller, just a 1940s hipster."

However, this is not the first time that a time traveller has seemingly starred in an image.

Around ten years before the hipster snap was taken, footage was taken of a woman holding a piece of technology that wasn't invented until many years later.

A woman 'talking on the phone' in a snap from the 1930s (YouTube)

The unearthed footage shows a group of women walking down some stairs.

One lady who stands out of the crowd due to her clothing and how she is seemingly holding a mobile phone as if she is taking a phone call.

Originally posted on a conspiracy theory site, the footage sent many theorists into a fact-finding spiral, according to The Sun.

One person theorised: "There is no question that she is speaking as she descends the stairs while holding a small object next to her ear.

"We can only wonder who is she speaking to and what exactly is she speaking in!"

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