Fact Check: Did women wearing shorts cause accident in 1937?

(Find a screenshot of the post here)

NewsMeter also found several other websites and social networking sites that had published the same story. (Find the link to the similar posts here)

Fact Check:

The claim is false.

NewsMeter found that a fact-check website, 'Hoax or Fact', had debunked this claim four years ago.

According to the article, the photo was staged and taken by Toronto-based commercial photography firm, Alexandra Studios (City of Toronto Archives, Fonds 1257 Series 1057 Item 4766). "The photo session of Alexandra Studios in fact dates back to 1937, the women seen are most certainly models and they did not cause any accident. Perhaps, it was a snapshot of city life," it said.

On careful observation, we found no dents or damages done to the car. It all looked like a set up.

After a reverse image search, we found several other similar images. When we compared them to the viral photo, we found a few hints that proved this was a staged photograph.

(Observe these images carefully)

1. Viral image.

2. A similar image with men and horse carriage missing.

3. The car with the same number "307" appears absolutely fine and is parked appropriately.

If we carefully observe the images, we can see that in the second image the men and the horse carriage are not visible whereas in the viral image they are clearly visible. In the third picture we notice that the car that hit the pole (reportedly an accident) in the first two pictures is absolutely still and parked appropriately. Look closely at the number on the car, "307". It is the same car.

Hence, the claim is false. The photos were from a photo shoot and taken by Toronto-based commercial photography firm, Alexandra Studios.