Text by Patrick Bell.
Fast food restaurants certainly hold a big part of American history in the second half of the twentieth century. Today we have a good selection to view along with their parking lots, so let us begin.
We will start with the ubiquitous Golden Arches. The newest vehicle I see is the Volkswagen Type 2 which was at least a ’68 model. To its left was a blue ’66 Ford Ranch Wagon or Country Sedan. That row was bookended by white Chevrolet Impala Sport Coupes; a ’62 on the left with a ’61 on the right. In the driveway a ’55 Chevrolet Two-Ten 4 door sedan was following a red ’60 Buick LeSabre or Invicta convertible.
Here is the first Hardee’s, which was located in Greenville, North Carolina, and opened in 1960. It may have been two door sedan day with at least three in the parking lot. On the right, a ’57 or ’58 Dodge Coronet with a ’52-’54 Ford in the background. On the left a V8 powered ’55 Plymouth Belvedere with a ’58 Ford Fairlane or Fairlane 500 on the other side of it.
A McDonald’s in Des Plaines, Illinois, that was the first in the state and the first franchise sold after the company’s incorporation in 1955. From the left a ’56 Oldsmobile 88 4 door sedan, and a ’57 Dodge 2 door Lancer hardtop that could have been any of the three trim lines and was equipped with the Red Ram 325 V8. Next was another Dodge, a ’50 Wayfarer Sedan, followed by a ’50-’52 Plymouth 4 door sedan in the shadows. A Mopar day it would seem.
Now we are at Kentucky Fried Chicken in Reno, Nevada. Colonel Sanders was waiting at the door. The year was ’59 or ’60 going by the white license plates where the “w” as the first digit signifies Washoe County, where the seat is Reno. This batch of cars was 80% GM, which indicates their popularity during that time period. From the left a ’56 Pontiac 860 or 870, ’56 Ford Country Sedan, ’49 Cadillac Series Sixty-One or Sixty-Two Touring Sedan, ’56 Oldsmobile Ninety Eight, and a ’59 Pontiac Catalina Safari.
This is another view of the Des Plaines McDonald’s on a Ford heavy day. The ’58 Fairlane Sunliner is the newest, with a dark ’52 under the sign and a two tone ’56 Fairlane Club Sedan to the right. To the left was a ’53 or ’54 Packard, and next to the Sunliner a ’52 Chevrolet Styline De Luxe Sport Coupe.
The Chuck-A-Burger on Route 66 in the Crestwood area of St. Louis, Missouri. I better stick with my diet and order the Lettuce and Tomato Salad for a quarter. Representatives of the Big 4 were dining on this day with a V8 powered ’56 Plymouth Savoy 4 door sedan on the far left, followed by a ’59 Ford Country Squire with a business sign in the window, a V8 ’56 Dodge Coronet 2 door Lancer hardtop, ’59 Rambler Super Cross Country wagon, ’59 Chevrolet Brookwood 4 door wagon, and a six cylinder ’56 Chevrolet.
Here is the first Burger King, which opened in 1954 in Miami, Florida. This image is from the mid sixties, with a ’57 Oldsmobile Super 88 Holiday Sedan in the foreground, followed by a clean ’63 Chevrolet Impala Super Sport Coupe, and a ’64 Rambler American 220 4 door sedan.
The first Jack in the Box opened in 1951 in San Diego, California. 1966 is reportedly the date on this photo with a ’62 Buick Special Coupe on the left, and the same vintage Chevrolet Corvair Coupe on the right.
A Burger Chef, location unknown, in the mid-sixties. In the foreground was a clean ’65 Chevrolet Chevelle Malibu wagon, with a black ’63 Ford Galaxie 500 or 500/XL Sports Hardtop on the other side of it. In the background was a red Renault 8.
Heavy traffic was the order in front of the Burger Boy Food-O-Rama (BBF) in Marietta, Ohio in 1966. Waiting at the traffic light was a ’57 Ford Ranch Wagon, and a ’65 Mercury Monterey 2 door hardtop. Completing the turn was an out of state, V8 powered ’57 Chevrolet Bel Air 4 door sedan that was following a ’66 Ford LTD 4 door hardtop. And on the left edge was part of a Triumph TR2 or 3.
Lendys Kentucky Fried Chicken, Roanoke, Virginia, in a 1963 image. Colonel Sanders is waiting at the door once again. And watch out for that hanging bale of hay above the door. On the right a ’61 Ford Country Squire, and to the left a ’63 Buick LeSabre 4 door hardtop.
An early In-N-Out Burger somewhere in California in the early seventies. On the left a ’71 AMC Matador 2 door hardtop, and to the right a red ’62 Pontiac Grand Prix, blue ’64 Chevrolet Impala Sport Sedan, and a white ’65 Ford Custom or Custom 500 2 door sedan.
Pup-n-Taco at the corner of Slauson Avenue and West Boulevard in Los Angeles. Both buildings were still there, and the Pup-n-Taco was a 24 hour, drive through smoke shop as late as August of 2022. On the left a nice looking ’63 Chevrolet Impala Super Sport Coupe, in the center a red ’66 Plymouth Valiant 100 2 door sedan followed by a ’58-’64 Volkswagen Type 1. On the right a blue ’61 Oldsmobile Ninety-Eight Sport Sedan and a white ’59 Chevrolet Sedan Delivery.
We are still in Los Angeles on Crenshaw Boulevard between Stocker Street and Homeland Drive. The Jack-in-the-Box has survived in a newer building, and the car wash sign remains as well. Gas was 34.9 cents per gallon on that day likely in the mid-sixties. Only three cars to ID; a white Volkswagen Type 1 that is too fuzzy to date, a gold ’63 Chevrolet Impala Sport Coupe, and a black ’64 Impala Sport Coupe passing by.
Kokomo, Indiana was where this Burger Chef was located, and in the parking lot were a few of the most popular cars in the sixties. From the left a ’65 or ’66 Ford F-100, ’66 Chevrolet Impala Sport Coupe, ’65 Ford Mustang convertible, ’64 Chevrolet Chevelle Malibu Sport Coupe, and a Volkswagen Type 1.
A Burger King in 1976 or ’77, perhaps in Michigan. From the left a ’73 or ’74 Chevrolet C/K series truck, ’67 Pontiac Tempest Custom convertible with a 326 V8 and a ’76 Michigan license plate, a rusty ’71 or ’72 Chevrolet Vega Coupe, and a ’69 Oldsmobile Cutlass S Holiday Coupe.
Carrols was an early fast food restaurant with many locations in the eastern states. It was bought and absorbed by Burger King. This location may have been Geneva, New York, in the early seventies. From the right a brown ’65 Chevrolet Chevy II 100 2 door sedan, red ’67 Plymouth Fury III convertible, white ’73 Chrysler Newport or Newport Custom 4 door sedan, and a green ’70 Pontiac GTO Hardtop Coupe.
Thanks for touring with us and good day to all!
Another great trip down Memory Lane! The cars, prices, and Names of the Places are all too familiar. And so many more local spots, DOGnSuds, A&W, Doyles (local), etc. Love that early KFC. In the mid 60s, my late brother met with the Col and successfully negotiated his first KFC franchise which eventually grew to 15 before selling. I can still remember that Finger Lickin Good KFC 🍗 😋.
You just had to remind me of my love of fast food. 🙂 Great pics!
So, just where would you chuck your Chuck-a Burger?
I’d also wonder where did the hot dogs come from at Pup n Taco?
I forgot got to ask *WHERE’S the BEEF? * Clara Peller still brings a smile to my face in those classic Wendy’s commercials!
This really takes me back—in Ohio I saw most of these in their “period” decor.
The “BBF” was founded by Borden’s in Columbus, OH (one of America’s great test markets for being a mix of north/south, urban/rural, eastern/midwestern, etc.). They were disappearing in the early 1970s as another Columbus startup–Wendy’s–was on the ascent.
The McDonald’s that arrived near home in the early 1960s was that old, drive-up style (with no sit-down)…it’s still there, and it’s been fun to watch its makeovers over the decades.
The Burger King I worked at had the elaborate sign with the “King” character into the early 1970s, and then it got streamlined (as McDonald’s was moving away from yellow arches to the mansard look, etc.).
Great memories and great cars—–thanks a bunch!
George
Good info. I was wondering about the Burger Boy. Frisch’s Big Boy was the dominant chain in Ohio. Burger Boy sounds like a knockoff, but apparently it wasn’t.
I believe this was originally a BURGER CHEF (like the 3rd to last photo). The building was remodeled and the original sign was repurposed: Littleton Rd. & Parsippany Rd., Parsippany NJ.
Your absolutely right, it was a Burger Chef. I believe the colors of the sign were orange and white. The building that used to be here looked almost identical to the Burger Chef pictured above. I used to take my bicycle from Lake Parsippany, cross over the just recently completed Rt.80 bridge after they re-aligned Parsippany Road in the mid 1970’s to get some good cheap burgers. Strange they would have demolished the original building to make this new one but left the sign still up.
JS: This cute farmhouse stood on the opposite side of Littleton Rd. near Princess St. (closer to Cerbo’s Garden Center). Not sure when the house was demolished.
Rich, thanks for the trip down memory lane! So many burger joints we never had here in Omaha, so it was nice see what other eateries folks had around the country. As for the McD’s in DesPlaines, IL., I used to live 3 blocks from what became a “museum” of the original walk-up McDonald’s. The orig. restaurant was across the street, where a HoJo restaurant stood–Ray Croc bought that & knocked it down for his first McDonald’s!!
We had a Carrol’s in New City, NY in the 70s. People hung out in the parking lot in their cool cars. A young lady named Marcia “mooned” us while riding by in her friends 69 Torino 500 fastback. Her cute little tush sticking out the window is etched in my hippocampus.
Our Burger King locations is still managed, operated and owned by Carrolls.
My mother cooked on weekdays, but on weekends and holidays it was take out and fast food. We never went to McDonalds or Jack In the Box but we regularly went to Gino’s (the pre KFC franchise that sold Kentucky Fried Chicken in the Delaware Valley). I ate many a box of chicken in the back seat of our 1960 Edsel.
The outlet that my mother deemed served the best quality chicken had an in driveway and an out driveway. But the length of the wheelbase combined with the exact suspension, and lowness of that car meant the in driveway scraped the car’s underside. I, as a car person, now know that you take on such a driveway hump at a 45 degree angle, but my father (or me at pre-driving age) did not know that. So we drove in the out driveway to not damage our car. That regularly elicited angry beeps and shouts from other patrons as we pulled into the parking lot.
I’ll add one more to the mix here – this is a Burger King parking lot in Fairfax, Virginia, circa 1970. And as a bonus, there’s a Red Barn next door as well:
In the ’70s my wife spent a summer in Huntington Beach, California with some cousins, and she can still sing the Pup ‘n’ Taco radio jingle to this day.
We shouldn’t forget the Henry’s hamburger chain (there is only one left, it is in Benton Harbor, MI) and the Kewpee Lunch chain (the last one of those is in Racine, WI).
The Golden Arches produced a burst of very pleasant memories. This will enter my top five most favorite CC pieces.
That first Jack in the Box was at 63rd and El Cajon in San Diego. A couple of blocks down College Ave. from SDSU where I started in 1971. To be exact 6270 El Cajon. This location is also the first location, of any fast food operation, to employ a two way intercom for orders.
Could be my aunt/uncle’s “68 LTD” rolling along “Lee Hwy”, there.
The first McDonald’s we ate at was in downtown Beverly, MA, on Front Street, in the early 1960’s, complete with the red & white tile decor and Golden Arches through the roof. Then it was rebuilt in the 1970’s in the faux colonial style that McDonald’s favored in the 1970’s, when a drive-through window and a dining room was added. The restaurant closed when the new Veteran’s Memorial Bridge, a.k.a. the Beverly-Salem Bridge was opened on 02 August, 1996, replacing the previous bridge, a drawbridge that was opened in 1896! When the new bridge was built, the new approach roads to the bridge blocked the entrance to the McDonald’s, forcing its closure. It took over twenty (20) years to do it, but the “Mickey D’s” was demolished to make way for a posh sit-down seafood restaurant sometime after 2020, but pictures of the old abandoned Mickey D’s still exist on Google Street View. Here’s a link:
https://www.google.com/maps/@42.5410089,-70.8860077,3a,75y,90h,90t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1sZnMRGvIeiDiWbq5gWRyTww!2e0!5s20191001T000000!6shttps:%2F%2Fstreetviewpixels-pa.googleapis.com%2Fv1%2Fthumbnail%3Fcb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile%26w%3D900%26h%3D600%26pitch%3D0%26panoid%3DZnMRGvIeiDiWbq5gWRyTww%26yaw%3D90!7i16384!8i8192?entry=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI1MDcwNy4wIKXMDSoASAFQAw%3D%3D
We started going to a newer McDonald’s that opened closer to home on the other side of town in the early 1970’s, on 40 Enon Street in Beverly, which was also built in the faux-colonial brick style. That McDonald’s still exists today, but has also been remodeled since its original construction (see link below):
https://www.google.com/maps/place/McDonald's/@42.5866132,-70.885267,3a,75y,270h,90t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sZ0NLiQ104ijQoVZ9MK44gg!2e0!6shttps:%2F%2Fstreetviewpixels-pa.googleapis.com%2Fv1%2Fthumbnail%3Fcb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile%26w%3D900%26h%3D600%26pitch%3D0%26panoid%3DZ0NLiQ104ijQoVZ9MK44gg%26yaw%3D270!7i16384!8i8192!4m14!1m7!3m6!1s0x89e316dfa60b0ef5:0x8514525e31274fd9!2sMcDonald's!8m2!3d42.5865255!4d-70.8857498!16s%2Fg%2F1vp74sl_!3m5!1s0x89e316dfa60b0ef5:0x8514525e31274fd9!8m2!3d42.5865255!4d-70.8857498!16s%2Fg%2F1vp74sl_?entry=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI1MDcwNy4wIKXMDSoASAFQAw%3D%3D
A link to the new restaurant’s web page appears below:
https://www.missionboathouse.com
The In’n’Out Burger is the spitting image of the one I went to in high school in the 80s on Ventura Blvd in Woodland Hills, CA (It could actually be the same one, I’m not sure). It’s one of the first 20 or so stores that at the time all had (and “mine” still has to this day) the double drive through lanes with no indoor customer area at all. All the cooking goes on in the little center shack while the prep is handled in the side building, there are constantly workers crossing the active drive thru lane on the right bringing raw food in to the grill/fry booth with about 8 employees total inside at one time, very much how a submarine must feel… The walkup window is on the other side of this view and the in car eating (parking) area is off to the right after you pull through. Tables with a permanent shade structure were added in the early 90s but until then it was all to go but you could (and often would) eat in your car. The drive-thru lines easily snake out onto Ventura Blvd, the smell of fried clutch was always in the air along with that of meat and potatoes as the entry is sharply uphill, only flattening out from about this photo’s perspective, which also features that LA mainstay of the era, the smog clouds above.
If in the LA area, it’s a treat to go to one of the original locations, same quality food but very different in how the place is operated.
All these historic photos are opening the flood gates of memory .
In the 1960’s KFC was tightly quality controlled resulting i n delicious non greasy chicken .
Sadly those days are long gone .
IIRC the IN-N-OUT chain is still family owned, why their burgers always taste so great .
-Nate
Interestingly the first time I had a burger from In N Out was in 2012 and noted an upset stomach later. I attributed to the sauce they used as some do that instead of ketchup and mayo or mustard. I actually prefer to go to Habit Burger (Santa Barbara in 1969) for their charburger and fries. IMHO their fries are better than In N Out. However, the parent company of KFC, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, and WingStreet bought them out, in 2020, so time will tell how good they stay.
My dad would pick up my brother and I from our elementary school in a metallic turquoise 1967 Chevy BelAir wagon that he bought used in 1970. He would either take us to Carroll’s on Main & Michigan or Henry’s on Pine & 24th in Niagara Falls, NY. It was 1974/75 and the first McDonald’s had only just opened but it was too far to drive to without being late back to school. NF had 2 other Carroll’s and another Henry’s location before we had the golden arches. Nowadays, Henry’s is long gone, the Carroll’s are all Burger Kings and a second McDonalds opened in 1978. I was partial to Carroll’s fries, but Henry’s burgers and shakes were far more memorable.
Many of these I’ve either never heard of, or only heard of existing 3-4 hours away in the cities. I thought In & Out was a newish thing. In northern lower Michigan, I only know of McDonalds, KFC, and Burger King. We had a Hardees for a short time in the early 90s but I never went there. There was non-abbreviated KFC which closed before the name change, then opened as KFC in the next town.
With a name like Chuck A Burger, I’d probably settle for the salad too!
Burger King is probably going to be the next one gone. We had a bunch close up in the last decade, some got bought by Culvers. I seem to remember in the mid 80s, the signage looking like the picture with the GM Square Body truck.
Dairy Queen is all but gone too. One by one they nearly all dropped the franchise and became independent shops or just closed up.
We had a bunch of A&Ws in the 70s/80s, all gone now, some turned into something else.
I found this site a few years back. It’s an old Angelfire page, but at least as of a few years back, the owner was still maintaining it. Still might be. At the time I contacted them about some I knew about, but some they didn’t list because they were more interested in national chains and not chains primarily located in Michigan. Piecing together defunct businesses and landmarks I find to be fascinating.
https://www.angelfire.com/mi4/forgottenmi/former/former.html
About a year ago, I volunteered for a 2 day relocation to St. Louis to cover some truck routes there for someone on vacation. My company put me up in a hotel, and when I was looking for someplace to eat, I discovered what I believe is the sole remaining Chuck A Burger location. It is still a drive-in and I ate in my car. It was absolutely delicious! I went back again the next evening and ordered the same thing.
Burger Chef got its start in Indianapolis. When I was growing up, my family preferred Burger Chef to McDonalds.