Probably closed by the mid to late 1970s. By 1982, South York Street was extended which divided the property in two. The screen was torn down by 1994 while the concession stand/projection booth remained until at least 1997.
The property has been dissected by Benson Drive. The southern half of the old drive in along with the screen are now H&R AgriPower. Just on the north side of Benson Drive, you can see the parch marks of some of the ramps.
A closer address is 223023 Derby Keppel Townline, Owen Sound, ON, Canada.
This address will take you to the old entrance where the ticket booths once stood. Although the new entrance to the property is a little east of this location.
I do know the Dream Theater stopped showing movies well before it officially closed. The opening of a six screen indoor theater would be considerable competition for anyone interested in reopening the Dream Theater as a movie house.
The reason why such a small town as Tahlequah could support two drive ins for decades was a simple one. Northeastern State University is located in Tahlequah. And with only the Dream Theater (a single screen indoor theater) as competition, the drive ins could stay open.
The Westside closed first. But it was the addition of a six screen indoor theater that spelled doom for the Tahlequah drive in once its screen was damaged during a storm. When the screen fell a year or two later, the owner didn’t bother to do the repairs and the drive in closed.
I lived in Tahlequah during that time. The screen had been damaged by a storm and was being secured by (I kid you not) a cable on one side connected to a pickup truck.
I do remember a wind storm finally knocking down the screen, but I do not know for sure if it was a tornado. But the screen was already mortally wounded, it was just a matter of time before it came down.
As of March, 2021, the marquee is still standing. Over the past 15 years, it has been used to advertise a few of the businesses occupying the building.
It is now blank which may indicate that J&B Transmission is no longer operating since their sign was present on the marquee a few years ago.
A closer address is 5410 Hawkinsville Rd, Macon, GA.
The entrance to the old drive in is now Cargill Road Con. I could not get an exact address, but the Macon Storage Center sits right alongside the old entrance road so I used that as a reference.
Today, the Macon Plant occupies the property with no trace of the drive in remaining.
The fact that the Caldwell Golf Course which is across the street lists Medford as part of its address on their website should be enough to say that the Bi State Drive In was also identified with Medford.
https://tinyurl.com/28fyfjyf
Medford is a town of about 1,000 people.
Renfrow and Jefferson are towns with 12 people each.
Plus, Jefferson is located about five miles SOUTHWEST of Medford.
It appears that the screen was torn down shortly after the drive-in closed in 2002. The screen does not appear in a 2004 aerial photo.
A fence that existed near the roadside between the entrance and exit roads and light poles that lined the entrance were also removed sometime after 2008. They were gone by 2013.
The concession stand is overgrown with trees on the outside and possibly the inside.
An April, 2021 Google Street view shows the entire area has been cleared. A building has been constructed near the former location of the concession stand/projection booth. And a house has been built in the NW corner.
The screen and marquee still stands, although the marquee is still in relatively poor condition.
MichaelKilgore - Okay, I was confused by your March 22, 2021 post.
So, all of Yessler’s property was purchased, but the high school was built on the opposing side of the property away from the drive-in which continued to exist for some time in an operational state.
863 South Main Street, Fort Scott, KS is a good alternate address that works on Google Maps. The one with US-69 put the location east of Dallas, Texas for some reason when I entered it.
It should be noted that Hickory Road was the entrance road to the drive-in. At least the first 75 feet of it from US-69.
Today there is nothing left of the drive-in. It seems to be a parking area for a truck driving school.
I have a closer address to what was the old entrance road, 4695 BC-3A, Nelson, BC.
The marquee is still standing. It is located just east of the entrance to the Mini-Mall Storage. From the photo, the entrance road to the drive-in is now a private entrance.
I suspect given the location of the marquee and the photo of when the drive-in was still in operation, that the road now called Starlight Drive was probably the exit road from the drive-in.
Something is not right with the photos and/or the location of the drive-in. The photos show the screen next to the highway and what is clearly a sign with “Roth’s Drive-In”.
However, the drive-in at the 3052 S. Main Street location had a different marquee and the screen was well away from the road on the back of the property.
And despite some similarities in the background to the drive-in located north of the town (Harrisburg Drive-In), the photos do not appear to match that either. Especially since the screen sat well away from the highway.
My guess is that the photos are from another drive-in that was also called Roth’s Drive-In, but not in Harrisburg.
Looks like they repainted the marquee and took the top part that had the name “Skyline” off. Now “Skyline” appears under the arrow with “A1 Exterminating Co” on the sign below.
The land around the sign has been paved for a parking lot. And the bricks which hold a small garden under the sign appears to be restored.
I believe I found it. The address is 1801 West King Ave, Florence, SC.
The drive-in appears in a 1957 aerial. By 1983 it was totally gone. A large, empty building currently occupies most of the property. While the “Wash Tub” occupies the entrance road.
The projector booth/concession stand was still present as late as 2010. You can see it clearly in a 2008 Google street view. However, a house was then built nearby and the building was torn down. Today, you can only see the foundations.
Probably closed by the mid to late 1970s. By 1982, South York Street was extended which divided the property in two. The screen was torn down by 1994 while the concession stand/projection booth remained until at least 1997.
The property has been dissected by Benson Drive. The southern half of the old drive in along with the screen are now H&R AgriPower. Just on the north side of Benson Drive, you can see the parch marks of some of the ramps.
A closer address is 223023 Derby Keppel Townline, Owen Sound, ON, Canada.
This address will take you to the old entrance where the ticket booths once stood. Although the new entrance to the property is a little east of this location.
https://tinyurl.com/2p88j7v5
The drive in was intact in a 1993 aerial, but demolished by 1997.
A closer address is 5521 E Rosedale Street, Fort Worth, TX.
The drive in appears intact and perhaps operational in a 1957 aerial. But by 1963 it had been demolished.
Today, several businesses occupy the property with no trace of the drive in remaining.
https://tinyurl.com/y7ahnxks
I do know the Dream Theater stopped showing movies well before it officially closed. The opening of a six screen indoor theater would be considerable competition for anyone interested in reopening the Dream Theater as a movie house.
The reason why such a small town as Tahlequah could support two drive ins for decades was a simple one. Northeastern State University is located in Tahlequah. And with only the Dream Theater (a single screen indoor theater) as competition, the drive ins could stay open.
The Westside closed first. But it was the addition of a six screen indoor theater that spelled doom for the Tahlequah drive in once its screen was damaged during a storm. When the screen fell a year or two later, the owner didn’t bother to do the repairs and the drive in closed.
I lived in Tahlequah during that time. The screen had been damaged by a storm and was being secured by (I kid you not) a cable on one side connected to a pickup truck.
I do remember a wind storm finally knocking down the screen, but I do not know for sure if it was a tornado. But the screen was already mortally wounded, it was just a matter of time before it came down.
As of March, 2021, the marquee is still standing. Over the past 15 years, it has been used to advertise a few of the businesses occupying the building.
It is now blank which may indicate that J&B Transmission is no longer operating since their sign was present on the marquee a few years ago.
A closer address is 5410 Hawkinsville Rd, Macon, GA.
The entrance to the old drive in is now Cargill Road Con. I could not get an exact address, but the Macon Storage Center sits right alongside the old entrance road so I used that as a reference.
Today, the Macon Plant occupies the property with no trace of the drive in remaining.
The fact that the Caldwell Golf Course which is across the street lists Medford as part of its address on their website should be enough to say that the Bi State Drive In was also identified with Medford. https://tinyurl.com/28fyfjyf
Medford is a town of about 1,000 people. Renfrow and Jefferson are towns with 12 people each. Plus, Jefferson is located about five miles SOUTHWEST of Medford.
So, I say Medford.
Found it!
It was located at 172 US 183, Rufugio, TX.
The drive in can be see in aerial photos from 1951, 1952, and 1956. However, by 1972 the drive in had completely disappeared.
Today, Express Cash Loans sits on the site with a pond taking up a large part of the property. There is no trace of the drive in remaining.
https://tinyurl.com/y3hzg4ez
It appears that the screen was torn down shortly after the drive-in closed in 2002. The screen does not appear in a 2004 aerial photo.
A fence that existed near the roadside between the entrance and exit roads and light poles that lined the entrance were also removed sometime after 2008. They were gone by 2013.
The concession stand is overgrown with trees on the outside and possibly the inside.
ROI Call Solutions sits on most of the property. You can still see the parch marks from some of the ramps just to the north of the building.
An April, 2021 Google Street view shows the entire area has been cleared. A building has been constructed near the former location of the concession stand/projection booth. And a house has been built in the NW corner.
The screen and marquee still stands, although the marquee is still in relatively poor condition.
MichaelKilgore - Okay, I was confused by your March 22, 2021 post.
So, all of Yessler’s property was purchased, but the high school was built on the opposing side of the property away from the drive-in which continued to exist for some time in an operational state.
A 2018 Google Street View shows the marquee has been taken down.
863 South Main Street, Fort Scott, KS is a good alternate address that works on Google Maps. The one with US-69 put the location east of Dallas, Texas for some reason when I entered it.
It should be noted that Hickory Road was the entrance road to the drive-in. At least the first 75 feet of it from US-69.
Today there is nothing left of the drive-in. It seems to be a parking area for a truck driving school.
I have a closer address to what was the old entrance road, 4695 BC-3A, Nelson, BC.
The marquee is still standing. It is located just east of the entrance to the Mini-Mall Storage. From the photo, the entrance road to the drive-in is now a private entrance.
I suspect given the location of the marquee and the photo of when the drive-in was still in operation, that the road now called Starlight Drive was probably the exit road from the drive-in.
A May 2021 Google Street View shows construction on the northern end of the property. It looks like duplexes, but could be something else.
Regardless, the new construction has wiped out the remnants of the drive-in.
Something is not right with the photos and/or the location of the drive-in. The photos show the screen next to the highway and what is clearly a sign with “Roth’s Drive-In”.
However, the drive-in at the 3052 S. Main Street location had a different marquee and the screen was well away from the road on the back of the property.
And despite some similarities in the background to the drive-in located north of the town (Harrisburg Drive-In), the photos do not appear to match that either. Especially since the screen sat well away from the highway.
My guess is that the photos are from another drive-in that was also called Roth’s Drive-In, but not in Harrisburg.
The concession stand was torn down. All that is left is the foundation.
Looks like they repainted the marquee and took the top part that had the name “Skyline” off. Now “Skyline” appears under the arrow with “A1 Exterminating Co” on the sign below.
The land around the sign has been paved for a parking lot. And the bricks which hold a small garden under the sign appears to be restored.
I believe I found it. The address is 1801 West King Ave, Florence, SC.
The drive-in appears in a 1957 aerial. By 1983 it was totally gone. A large, empty building currently occupies most of the property. While the “Wash Tub” occupies the entrance road.
There is no trace of the drive-in remaining.
https://tinyurl.com/5y34kwz9
The projector booth/concession stand was still present as late as 2010. You can see it clearly in a 2008 Google street view. However, a house was then built nearby and the building was torn down. Today, you can only see the foundations.