As of October 2022, this property remains vacant with only the items I mentioned before remaining. There does appear to be a real estate sign on the gate, so the property may be for sale.
A July 2022 Google Street View shows a house in the middle of the western side of the property. It sits close to where the projection booth/concession stand had once stood.
A 1973 aerial shows the drive-in intact.
I can’t be sure if it was operational. There is a trail leading from the road straight to the projection booth/concession stand. That’s normally a sign of a closed drive-in. But the ticket booth does straddle the trail.
A 1978 aerial shows the drive-in demolished.
A 1986 aerial shows the apartments occupying the northern half of the property, but you can still see part of the ramps on the southern half.
That section of the property remained undeveloped until at least 1998.
Nothing had been constructed on the property in a 1952 aerial. So it most likely didn’t open until 1953 at the earliest.
The 1957 aerial is most interesting as the projection booth seems to have been on the back of the lot. That is quite a throw for a projector, which is normally much closer to the screen.
The entrance/exit behind the screen is now obliterated as HWY92 was expanded over that part of the property. The entrance off Charlotte Street is also totally gone. I’m not sure which entrance was the main one since the details in the aerial aerial are difficult to see.
Today, there are only parch marks of a partial outline and the ramps. It remains an open field.
This puts it right on the property about where the entrance was located. Although the feature that appears to be a foundation doesn’t seem to have anything to do with the drive-in.
A 1980 aerial shows the drive-in demolished. By 1985, the property had been razed.
Today, the property is almost totally an open field with some trees. There is no trace of the drive-in remaining.
A June 2022 Google Street View does show a mostly cleaned-up property. Although the base of the screen can still be see. But if you didn’t know what it was, you wouldn’t know by looking at what’s left of it.
A 1978 aerial shows nothing but parch marks of the ramps, outline, and entrance/exit road of the drive-in. The parch marks have long faded away.
Today, a house sits about where the screen once stood. Most of the property is farmland. But there is one small trace of the drive-in remaining. A few feet of the entrance road still exists, albeit in dirt form, where it connects to 664th Avenue.
At 1103 N 4th, Lexa, AR, the 1957 aerial shows an open field behind two small commercial buildings. The field has parch marks that are sorta fanned-shaped. But more importantly there is a small structure in the middle that is about the right size and shape for a projection booth.
It’s still not good enough for me to say that this was where the drive-in was located. Mostly because I see no evidence of a screen or the support structure for one (assuming it wasn’t temporary).
It’s unusual for a drive-in to be completely demolished with all traces removed unless something large is built on the property. Mostly because it’s not worth the effort. Ramps, entrance/exit roads, and the outline normally remain especially when only a few years have passed since its closing.
There is no large structure anywhere close to the area where the drive-in was located. So, that leaves a temporary drive in with no permanent structures. That’s my guess as to what this was unless an earlier aerial showing the drive-in can be produced.
A 1965 aerial shows a house at the location of Thomson’s Storage with no evidence a drive-in once stood there. Of course, that doesn’t mean a drive-in did not exist at that location, it’s just that an earlier aerial or other confirmation is needed.
A 1957 aerial shows no trace of any drive-in along the highway to the north of the town. So, it not only lasted a short time, it was demolished and unrecognizable just 6 years later. This may have been a temporary drive-in which would explain why it left no trace.
One mile north of West Helena puts it roughly where North 4th Street intersects with AR-185, the road that leads to the airport. There is a property on the north side that looks roughed up as if cars had been parked on it. But that is not enough evidence to say that was it.
Google Maps has updated their addresses and this one puts it right on the property. You can see the remaining ramps and the marquee is still there as of September 2022.
It appears that the highway was shifted to the east at some point, which is why the marquee is no longer beside the road.
Nope, I see no indication of any other drive-in in the Newport area. Although it could’ve pre-dated the aerials or existed for a short time and was demolished between aerials.
I’m wondering if it existed in the town at all. Even a temporary drive-in with a car capacity of 300 vehicles is going to leave a recognizable mark a few years after it shut down.
The exception would be a large building constructed on the property, but there is no such structure along South 9th that would wipe out the existence of a drive-in. At least in the 1957 aerial.
I’ve yet to run across an aerial that was not dated correctly. So, assuming the aerial is accurate, then I’m not buying a drive-in along South 9th unless an earlier aerial is produced that shows it.
A 1957 aerial shows the drive-in intact and appearing operational. By 1961, it appears closed.
A trail cuts through the drive-in from the north to the projection booth/concession stand before turning west. The west side of the property looks to be razed or at least highly disturbed.
I’d say this drive-in closed at least a year earlier than 1961, perhaps two or three years earlier.
As of October 2022, this property remains vacant with only the items I mentioned before remaining. There does appear to be a real estate sign on the gate, so the property may be for sale.
A July 2022 Google Street View shows a house in the middle of the western side of the property. It sits close to where the projection booth/concession stand had once stood.
Found it!
The address is 254 Gorham Hill Rd, Gorham, NH.
It was located west of Gorham on US-2, close to the town of Randolph. The drive-in is intact from 1955 to 1978. By 1986, it had been demolished.
Today, the eastern side of the property is residential, but the western side is still untouched. You can see the outline and faint hints of the ramps.
https://tinyurl.com/ybt62kkk
A 1973 aerial shows the drive-in intact. I can’t be sure if it was operational. There is a trail leading from the road straight to the projection booth/concession stand. That’s normally a sign of a closed drive-in. But the ticket booth does straddle the trail.
A 1978 aerial shows the drive-in demolished.
A 1986 aerial shows the apartments occupying the northern half of the property, but you can still see part of the ramps on the southern half. That section of the property remained undeveloped until at least 1998.
By 2007, all traces of the drive-in were gone.
The projection booth/concession stand still stands and just a hint of the ramps and outline are still present as well.
Nothing had been constructed on the property in a 1952 aerial. So it most likely didn’t open until 1953 at the earliest.
The 1957 aerial is most interesting as the projection booth seems to have been on the back of the lot. That is quite a throw for a projector, which is normally much closer to the screen.
The entrance/exit behind the screen is now obliterated as HWY92 was expanded over that part of the property. The entrance off Charlotte Street is also totally gone. I’m not sure which entrance was the main one since the details in the aerial aerial are difficult to see.
Today, there are only parch marks of a partial outline and the ramps. It remains an open field.
A closer address is 2120 US-92, Auburndale, FL.
This places it on the Walmart, although most of the drive-in sat on what is now the parking lot of the Walmart.
https://tinyurl.com/3t69p4zx
A closer address is 3594 S State Rd, Ionia, MI.
Google Maps has updated their addresses and this puts it on the property.
The ramps have faded considerably over the past few years. You can barely see the outline today.
https://tinyurl.com/2s4ebazh
An August 2023 Google Street View shows the screen is poor shape.
A closer address is 1110 S Main St, Petal, MS.
This puts it right on the property about where the entrance was located. Although the feature that appears to be a foundation doesn’t seem to have anything to do with the drive-in.
A 1980 aerial shows the drive-in demolished. By 1985, the property had been razed.
Today, the property is almost totally an open field with some trees. There is no trace of the drive-in remaining.
http://tinyurl.com/3w8kpdfv
Nothing left of the drive-in today. There is an entrance in the same location as the old drive-in entrance and that is about it.
While most of the property is still an open field, all traces of the drive-in disappeared by 2004.
A June 2023 Google Street View shows the screen is still standing, although it is disappearing into the trees.
https://tinyurl.com/mryyt4xp
A June 2022 Google Street View does show a mostly cleaned-up property. Although the base of the screen can still be see. But if you didn’t know what it was, you wouldn’t know by looking at what’s left of it.
A 1978 aerial shows nothing but parch marks of the ramps, outline, and entrance/exit road of the drive-in. The parch marks have long faded away.
Today, a house sits about where the screen once stood. Most of the property is farmland. But there is one small trace of the drive-in remaining. A few feet of the entrance road still exists, albeit in dirt form, where it connects to 664th Avenue.
https://tinyurl.com/zvj5errf
You can still see part of the outline with the trees that border the property on the east and north sides.
At 1103 N 4th, Lexa, AR, the 1957 aerial shows an open field behind two small commercial buildings. The field has parch marks that are sorta fanned-shaped. But more importantly there is a small structure in the middle that is about the right size and shape for a projection booth.
It’s still not good enough for me to say that this was where the drive-in was located. Mostly because I see no evidence of a screen or the support structure for one (assuming it wasn’t temporary).
So, this is just a guess.
It’s unusual for a drive-in to be completely demolished with all traces removed unless something large is built on the property. Mostly because it’s not worth the effort. Ramps, entrance/exit roads, and the outline normally remain especially when only a few years have passed since its closing.
There is no large structure anywhere close to the area where the drive-in was located. So, that leaves a temporary drive in with no permanent structures. That’s my guess as to what this was unless an earlier aerial showing the drive-in can be produced.
A 1965 aerial shows a house at the location of Thomson’s Storage with no evidence a drive-in once stood there. Of course, that doesn’t mean a drive-in did not exist at that location, it’s just that an earlier aerial or other confirmation is needed.
A 1957 aerial shows no trace of any drive-in along the highway to the north of the town. So, it not only lasted a short time, it was demolished and unrecognizable just 6 years later. This may have been a temporary drive-in which would explain why it left no trace.
One mile north of West Helena puts it roughly where North 4th Street intersects with AR-185, the road that leads to the airport. There is a property on the north side that looks roughed up as if cars had been parked on it. But that is not enough evidence to say that was it.
A closer address is 4979 E Lee Hwy, Loudon, TN.
Google Maps has updated their addresses and this one puts it right on the property. You can see the remaining ramps and the marquee is still there as of September 2022.
It appears that the highway was shifted to the east at some point, which is why the marquee is no longer beside the road.
https://tinyurl.com/b3mv373n
Nope, I see no indication of any other drive-in in the Newport area. Although it could’ve pre-dated the aerials or existed for a short time and was demolished between aerials.
I’m wondering if it existed in the town at all. Even a temporary drive-in with a car capacity of 300 vehicles is going to leave a recognizable mark a few years after it shut down.
The exception would be a large building constructed on the property, but there is no such structure along South 9th that would wipe out the existence of a drive-in. At least in the 1957 aerial.
I’ve yet to run across an aerial that was not dated correctly. So, assuming the aerial is accurate, then I’m not buying a drive-in along South 9th unless an earlier aerial is produced that shows it.
It may have closed well before 1961.
A 1957 aerial shows the drive-in intact and appearing operational. By 1961, it appears closed.
A trail cuts through the drive-in from the north to the projection booth/concession stand before turning west. The west side of the property looks to be razed or at least highly disturbed.
I’d say this drive-in closed at least a year earlier than 1961, perhaps two or three years earlier.
The drive-in was razed and replaced by townhouses by 2003. There is no trace of the drive-in remaining save for the entrance road.