Semri Drive-In
Silvis, Illinois1951-1982
Order Semri Drive-In tees, long sleeve tees and hoodies. The name of the Silvis, Illinois, drive-in was built from local towns, Silvis, East Moline and Rock Island, though comments on Cinema Treasures are the only source for that. A postcard shows a white screen tower with a slanted top and SEMRI DRIVE IN in spaced red letters behind a bed of flowers. Browse the styles below, and the full Semri history is further down. Down Home Apparel is an American small business remembering the best places and teams of yesteryear, and every shirt is printed to order in the USA.
4 products
Semri Drive-In History
The Semri Drive-In in Silvis, Illinois, opened in the summer of 1951 at 1900 10th Street, with Dan Dailey in Give My Regards to Broadway. When it was announced in May 1950, the architect's sketch called it the Rustic Drive-In, with plans for 700 cars at a cost of $100,000.
The name that stuck was built from local towns. Its sister theater, the Memri in Milan, had taken its name in a contest, from letters of Milan and the Illinois side of the Quad Cities. Swap Silvis in for Milan and you get Semri: Silvis, East Moline, Rock Island. Comments on Cinema Treasures are the only source for this.
A postcard shows a white screen tower with a slanted top and SEMRI DRIVE IN in spaced red letters, set behind a bed of flowers. Redstone Drive-In Theatres took it over in August 1964. It closed on September 5, 1982, with Poltergeist and The Thing. Senior housing now stands on the site.