It appears from the 1953 aerial that the drive-in had the unusual arrangement of a small projector booth in the front row.
Of the three entrance/exit roads, the one connecting the drive-in to US Rte. 2 on the south side seems to be the main entrance. A ticket booth and overflow drive is present in that location.
A small structure next to the north exit road may have been where concessions were sold. The east entrance had a gate.
By 1981, the entire drive-in had been demolished and the property razed. Today, there is no trace of the drive-in remaining.
An April 2022 Google Street View shows the grass has grown considerably on the property. It is difficult to tell, but it does appear that the projection booth/concession stand is still intact.
Property is still empty with the outline and ramps remaining. Looks like someone added an entrance road off Rockwell Drive. The original entrance road is gone, although the area is empty save for vegetation.
1444 W Marlette Rd, Sandusky, MI is slightly more accurate since the drive-in sat on the north side of the road.
By 1982, it had been totally demolished. Today, you can see the barest hint of an outline (parch marks) on the north side of the houses that sit on the property.
A 1955 aerial shows no trace of the drive-in at that intersection.
Given the trees in the area, my guess is that the drive-in sat on the northeast corner. In 1955, a large building sat on the property which looked to be fairly new at the time.
The NE corner also has plenty of space to hold “5 acres for cars”, so that’s my guess.
The drive-in was intact in 1981, but by 1997 it had been demolished.
Today, it is the home of Passion Spas and perhaps another business. You can clearly see the outline and ramps. The old entrance/exit road has been cut off by new construction of the highway.
I still see nothing in the 1953 aerial that suggests a drive-in of any recognizable shape or features existed at that intersection.
Either it was built over or it was completely razed. The latter doesn’t make much sense to raze property and leave it undeveloped. But I’ve seen stranger things.
A 1958 aerial shows the drive-in intact and operational, but by 1969 the screen had been removed. By 1983, the concession stand/projection booth was gone as well with only the foundation remaining.
Today, if I squint hard I can just see the remnants of the ramps with trees that surround where the concession stand/projection booth once stood. A few RVs and trailers are on the property, but no indication that someone is living there.
The truly distinctive feature of the drive-in is the large oval track that surrounds it. The 1958 aerial shows the track quite nicely, but it’s also not quite complete. there is a section on the north corner that is not connected. So, this doesn’t appear to be a go-kart track.
Why the oval track was put into place is beyond me. Plus, it was fully connected in the 1969 aerial long after the drive-in shut down. Today, East Spruce Street replaces the north and west sides of the track with the remaining areas just barely visible.
This is the address of Baldwin Self Storage and puts it right on the property, at least for Google Maps.
A 2020 aerial photo shows the screen intact along with a few ramps. Considering that this drive-in was certainly closed by 1999 and perhaps even before 1993, the screen is in remarkably good condition at least from the overhead and Google Street photos.
A closer address is 702 Bruce Hwy, Woree QLD 4868, Australia.
This puts it on the north side of the drive-in.
An October 2021 Google Street View shows the screen on the back of the property still standing. However, a small “roundabout” has been put in place where the property connects to the highway. That indicates that development may be soon arriving if it hasn’t started already.
I’m not understanding the “ … demolished in 1966 to make way for a highway” in the description because comparing the 1951 to 1980 aerials show no new highway or any construction along HWY 13 all the way down to where it turns east.
Things are not “demolished” until the crews arrive to build the highway. So, if there was never any highway construction, there would be no money allocated to tear it down. Unless it was torn down for another reason.
Plus, County Highway N which may be County Trunk N in the advert joins HWY 13 from the west, then both are the same for one mile until it branches off to the east. Which means that the drive-in could’ve been located on either road. “9 miles” in an advert is not going to be exact.
What I can say is a 1957 aerial that extends from Richfield Road south shows no indication of any drive-in. And that is from two/three miles south of County Highway N.
The excavated area is actually north of where the drive-in once stood.
Most of the property is home to two businesses, Smith’s Body Shop and Goffnett’s Transmission.
There is nothing left of the drive-in itself. However, the outline of the entrance/exit road is still present and you can just see it to the north of the American Legion Post 383 running northwest to southeast and connecting to Mission Road.
It’s basically the open field south of the diner. A 2009 aerial doesn’t show anything in the field.
The photo of the screen, which was bolted on a trailer, show it parallel to the road. So, I’m guessing that patrons got out of their vehicles and sat in the grass to watch the movies.
It appears from the 1953 aerial that the drive-in had the unusual arrangement of a small projector booth in the front row.
Of the three entrance/exit roads, the one connecting the drive-in to US Rte. 2 on the south side seems to be the main entrance. A ticket booth and overflow drive is present in that location.
A small structure next to the north exit road may have been where concessions were sold. The east entrance had a gate.
By 1981, the entire drive-in had been demolished and the property razed. Today, there is no trace of the drive-in remaining.
An April 2022 Google Street View shows the grass has grown considerably on the property. It is difficult to tell, but it does appear that the projection booth/concession stand is still intact.
The overhead view from Google Maps shows the outline, ramps, and concession stand/projector booth still intact.
However, the latest street view (July 2021) shows the property overgrown with trees and grass.
Property is still empty with the outline and ramps remaining. Looks like someone added an entrance road off Rockwell Drive. The original entrance road is gone, although the area is empty save for vegetation.
1444 W Marlette Rd, Sandusky, MI is slightly more accurate since the drive-in sat on the north side of the road.
By 1982, it had been totally demolished. Today, you can see the barest hint of an outline (parch marks) on the north side of the houses that sit on the property.
A 1955 aerial shows no trace of the drive-in at that intersection.
Given the trees in the area, my guess is that the drive-in sat on the northeast corner. In 1955, a large building sat on the property which looked to be fairly new at the time.
The NE corner also has plenty of space to hold “5 acres for cars”, so that’s my guess.
The drive-in was intact in 1981, but by 1997 it had been demolished.
Today, it is the home of Passion Spas and perhaps another business. You can clearly see the outline and ramps. The old entrance/exit road has been cut off by new construction of the highway.
@Dave Lounder THE DRIVE-IN THEATRE PRESERVATION SOCIETY TheDriveInGuys.com
This is a Google Street View from August 2019 of the entrance to the Stone Drive-In. https://tinyurl.com/mrx4w8tu
Now, is that the entrance and is that the marquee as it looked when dansdriveintheater made his post in January 2019?
I take it the marquee has been updated since?
I still see nothing in the 1953 aerial that suggests a drive-in of any recognizable shape or features existed at that intersection.
Either it was built over or it was completely razed. The latter doesn’t make much sense to raze property and leave it undeveloped. But I’ve seen stranger things.
A closer address is 224 N Logan Blvd, Yeagertown, PA.
A 1957 aerial shows the drive-in on the west side of North Logan Blvd where it remained intact in a 1964 aerial.
Today, the property is the Greater Lewistown Plaza with no trace of the drive-in remaining.
https://tinyurl.com/sme5vjvj
A 1958 aerial shows the drive-in intact and operational, but by 1969 the screen had been removed. By 1983, the concession stand/projection booth was gone as well with only the foundation remaining.
Today, if I squint hard I can just see the remnants of the ramps with trees that surround where the concession stand/projection booth once stood. A few RVs and trailers are on the property, but no indication that someone is living there.
The truly distinctive feature of the drive-in is the large oval track that surrounds it. The 1958 aerial shows the track quite nicely, but it’s also not quite complete. there is a section on the north corner that is not connected. So, this doesn’t appear to be a go-kart track.
Why the oval track was put into place is beyond me. Plus, it was fully connected in the 1969 aerial long after the drive-in shut down. Today, East Spruce Street replaces the north and west sides of the track with the remaining areas just barely visible.
A closer address is 8335 M-37, Baldwin, MI.
This is the address of Baldwin Self Storage and puts it right on the property, at least for Google Maps.
A 2020 aerial photo shows the screen intact along with a few ramps. Considering that this drive-in was certainly closed by 1999 and perhaps even before 1993, the screen is in remarkably good condition at least from the overhead and Google Street photos.
https://tinyurl.com/2vhmrc2t
The current address of the property is 1100 Broadway Ave, Pasadena, TX.
However, Simmons Blvd was the entrance road at the time the drive-in was open.
The drive-in was intact in a 1983 aerial photo, but demolished by 1995. Most of the ramps remained visible in a 2004 aerial.
Today, JVIC sits on the property with no trace of the drive-in remaining.
A closer address is 4497 Roberts Pl NE, Moses Lake, WA.
Google Maps added the address which puts it right in the middle of the property.
Today, the property is still empty. You can still see the traces of the ramps and entrance/exit road.
A closer address is 969 TX-16, San Saba, TX.
This puts it right on the property. A 2008 Google Street View showed the screen mostly intact, but by the following year it had mostly disappeared.
The projection booth/concession stand is also intact and you can still see the outline and the ramps.
https://tinyurl.com/46wecvwf
A closer address is 702 Bruce Hwy, Woree QLD 4868, Australia.
This puts it on the north side of the drive-in.
An October 2021 Google Street View shows the screen on the back of the property still standing. However, a small “roundabout” has been put in place where the property connects to the highway. That indicates that development may be soon arriving if it hasn’t started already.
https://tinyurl.com/w4r9bzd9
A closer address is 2681 OH-3, Washington Court House, Ohio.
This puts it right on the property.
A 1956 aerial shows the drive-in intact, but a 1985 aerial shows it demolished.
Today, only the entrance and exit roads remain along with some of the outline of the drive-in. Also, the base of the marquee is still intact.
https://tinyurl.com/2hv3k34r
I’m not understanding the “ … demolished in 1966 to make way for a highway” in the description because comparing the 1951 to 1980 aerials show no new highway or any construction along HWY 13 all the way down to where it turns east.
Things are not “demolished” until the crews arrive to build the highway. So, if there was never any highway construction, there would be no money allocated to tear it down.
Unless it was torn down for another reason.
Plus, County Highway N which may be County Trunk N in the advert joins HWY 13 from the west, then both are the same for one mile until it branches off to the east. Which means that the drive-in could’ve been located on either road. “9 miles” in an advert is not going to be exact.
What I can say is a 1957 aerial that extends from Richfield Road south shows no indication of any drive-in. And that is from two/three miles south of County Highway N.
The excavated area is actually north of where the drive-in once stood. Most of the property is home to two businesses, Smith’s Body Shop and Goffnett’s Transmission.
There is nothing left of the drive-in itself. However, the outline of the entrance/exit road is still present and you can just see it to the north of the American Legion Post 383 running northwest to southeast and connecting to Mission Road.
Extremely short-lived.
It’s basically the open field south of the diner. A 2009 aerial doesn’t show anything in the field.
The photo of the screen, which was bolted on a trailer, show it parallel to the road. So, I’m guessing that patrons got out of their vehicles and sat in the grass to watch the movies.
The drive-in must’ve been constructed shortly after the highway as a 1952 aerial shows nothing but trees in the area.
A 1981 aerial shows the drive-in demolished with a business located near where the projection booth/concession stand probably stood.
Property is currently home to Fabick CAT. Only the outline and hint of where some of the ramps once existed is all that remains.
A closer address is 3613 S State Rd, Ionia, MI.
This is the address of Bill’s Fireworks which owns the property.
A 2019 Google Street View shows a stage platform where the screen was/is located. Was this an inflatable screen, perhaps?
I’m sorry to hear that the projector was stolen. But I’m wondering why well water issues would close a drive-in?
The concession stand/projection booth “still standing” looks more to be a technicality today. From the overhead view, the roof appears to be gone.
From an August 2022 Google Street View, bushes and trees have engulfed what’s left of the structure.
A closer address is 3777 Peters Mountain Rd, Halifax, PA.
Today, a Giant Food Store sits on the property with no trace of the drive-in remaining.
https://tinyurl.com/5csvfyz4