Art & Inspiration A cool roadside attraction!

As a kid, my parents would take us on lots of road trips. Before there were many of the interstates , We would take the old U.S. Route 1 from Virginia to the Florida keys. Back then the trip, was more fun than the destination. We stayed in motels with those little individual cabins for each car. Also there were those souvenir shops, that sold real fire crackers, as we called them. All the cool mom and pop restaurants, etc. We had the most FUN. Does anyone have a cool story or a photo of those type of places and times? {Past or Present} I'm planning a coast to coast road trip with my grand kids, It's on my bucket list, of things to do! Thanks Ron...

 

I have made the 230 mile trek up to grandmas since 1969 as a kid till today and this Old Service Station in the middle of nowhere has always been one that stands out because of its vintage ambience...There up until just last year was a 50's Olds & Pontiac nestled in a bush right alongside the garage and I always joked that the owners didn't pay their repair bill and sat they did.

The place is now just a teardown waiting to happen...its even sinking into the ground gathering more ambience. It was even a part of a documentary this way.

Last year I moved up this way and stopped by to capture a pic or two to capture time for a moment and the eccentricities of what people do intrigue me such as the woodstove in the middle of the lot with a chair beside it...no doubt a downtrodden soul getting warmed up...Have a great trip Ron...









http://thelosthighway.ca/

https://www.ontarioabandonedplaces.com/upload/showpic.asp?id=232032

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google Road side America and you will find all sorts of cool things and places. Good luck and have fun

 

is there another name for them???

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That's a cool story Stogy. This building may not look like much. But back in the 50s and 60s. This was called The Snake and Monkey Farm. Dad took us there. They had all types of monkeys and reptiles. IT was on old US route 11. I stopped by and took this PHOTO. Only thing left were my memories. Lol Ron

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Now they say fire works. Not much Bang like the old Fire Crackers back then. We always stopped ,and got some here. I Loved all their signs. Pedro said if you kids through a big enough fit. They will turn the car around and come back! Lol Ron...

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People are just a hoot for sure you can be transported to another dimension the second you interact...

Another place I can recall as a kid was another along old highway#7 that had a black bear in a cage about 10'x10' as an attraction...the one time we stopped it was lying down in a cosy spot on its back teeth kinda rotten mouth open. A sign was there saying he liked coca cola and this and that...heck I just found some info on that too and the buses still stop there to this day and the concrete pad is still there.





https://lindaseccaspina.wordpress.com/tag/highway-7/

https://atthemanse.wordpress.com/2013/03/18/of-actinolite-bears-and-picking-up-pop-bottles/

http://www.countryroadshastings.ca/...emories-a-trip-back-in-time-via-old-highway-7​

 

your story reminded me of very similar experiences as a kid on family vacations....always exited to get some fire crackers, if we got the Black Cats , we thought we were getting the best...the good old days

 

Great memories, Ron. I remember the little roadside picnic areas along most two lane roads back then. Usually there was one table and a trash receptacle and a can of pork and beans and some tea from one of those little Igloo cooler jugs was about all we had, maybe some peanut butter crackers with Lance written on the package. If Mom had packed some home-made biscuits with country ham we were in heaven. This was long before anyone had ever heard of "golden arches".....Don.

 

This was somewhere along Rt. 29/211 in Central Virginia Summer of 1961. I saw this Cord parked in front of what appeared to be an abandoned motel/cottages. It looked to be just parked there with no tags. I made my Dad pull in there so my Mom could take this picture of me in front of it. I was a car nut from infancy so just seeing this Cord was fascinating for me.

 

At the time we were moving all of our belongings, which wasn't much, from East Tennessee to Maryland towing a dual axle U-Haul trailer with this 1960 Ford. By the time we reached our new home the transmission in the Ford was toast.

 

I always enjoyed those roadside historical markers that you don't get to see on the interstates. I learned to try and read quickly as we were going too fast to read most of them in their entirety. Dad was always in a hurry to get somewhere.

 

Talk about those Golden Arches, remember when they were on the ground in front of the McDonalds instead of up in the air? That was back in the mid 60's when our family of eight could eat for about ten dollars. Back then your hamburger came with a bunch of diced onions on it and us kids would have bad breath for days. Good memories!

 

Cool story's Don. A funny story about the roadside picnic tables. My grandson, about 4 at the time . We were on a road trip. I stopped at a little country store. I got us some of those little cans of Vianna sausages. He went home and told his mom how he had the best little baby hot dogs.Lol Ron





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Great story, Ron, about your Grandson and Vienna Sausage. I often ask people if they know why there are 7 sausages in a can. When they indicate that they don't know, I tell 'em it's so in a pinch you can stretch a can for a week!

 

Of course all good parents, at least in the South, had a stash of Moon Pies hidden somewhere in the car.

 

Was stationed at Ft. Lewis, some shopping center in Tacoma had a gorilla in a cage that had been in there for a long time, like 20 or 30 years. Seemed strange to me and couldn't help but feel sorry for the old fella.

The whole deal with Americana and roadside attractions to me is seeing how things worked before the homogenized corporate culture took over.

 

Remember the scene in the movie American Graffiti. Where the car salesman was sitting in the Big chair. I saw this one at a roadside market.

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The town where I reside happens to have one of the last of the "roadside attractions". I think it might be around for a while because it's on an interstate and not a state highway. You do have to take the right exit onto the feeder road to get to it. You enter through the snake house and through that to the fairly nice zoo in back. It's worth the stop and worth making it part of a cruise itinerary (about a dozen cars, over that gets a little tight). It's on I-35 between Austin and San Antonio..... New Braunfels, Texas.

 

Still there in Chester WV. on WV 2. Chester is at the very top of WV between Ohio and Pa.

 

-- and R.C. cola!!!

 

A few local ones. Then and now

Not sure if the cider barrel is still there, the chair is in SE Wash. DC

 

I panic if there is not a couple cans in the pantry.

Ben

 

Two I took the kids to. Dinosaur Land, Winchester Va and a roadside zoo in Thurmont MD I think they are both still open.

 

COOL WRAYMEN, I Took these at dinosaurland too. I think it's been there since the 50s.

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Always liked that scene in AG with Toad and the salesman—

I’ve posted it before, but the little town near me has the “teapot dome” gas station. It’s park now but I used to get gas (and propane) at it.





Here’s a couple pics of my Buick and Chevy by it. Let me know if you decide to visit it- it’s in Zillah WA.


"If it ain't broke - fix it till it is"

 

My sister and I on our annual trip to Lake Tahoe.

But, Ron, what I really wanted to say is, I have lusted over a Nomad like yours, same year, same color, my whole life. It's gorgeous. Can I go too? I'm a little bigger now.

 

Do you drink red or white wine with your dinner looks good.

 

When I make this road trip happen. I hope to visit some H.A.M.B.'ers also. Maybe we can meet up. But right now life keeps getting in the way. I have a 4th grand kid on the way. So I'll need to wait until they can all travel. Our old Nomad is just a driver, so thanks. This is an old roadside sign that's still standing , I thought it was cool. Ron...

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We're big on the A&W Root Beer!