Whitesburg Drive-In
Huntsville, Alabama1949-1979
Shop Whitesburg Drive-In tees, long sleeve tees and hoodies. It opened on June 16, 1949, as Huntsville's first drive-in, with room for 400 cars and a 40 cent ticket for adults. After it closed, the owner asked the city to burn the screen tower. Firefighters poured in diesel and lit it on June 10, 1980, and it was gone in about half an hour. Pick a style below, then read the full Whitesburg history 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.
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Whitesburg Drive-In History
The Whitesburg Drive-In in Huntsville, Alabama, opened on June 16, 1949, at 4851 Whitesburg Drive South, as the city's first drive-in. William Powell was on the screen in The Senator Was Indiscreet. It held 400 cars. Adults paid 40 cents, and children over five paid 10. Acme Investments owned and ran it.
The grand opening ad listed raised ramps, individual speakers and free baby bottle warming, and told customers they could come dressed as they were. By 1954 the screen had been enlarged to 100 by 40 feet for CinemaScope, with a free playground below it.
The last show was in late September 1979. The screen tower stood about 60 feet tall and was starting to look unsafe, so the next summer the owner asked the city to burn it. On June 10, 1980, firefighters cut holes in the top of the structure, poured in diesel and lit it, with about 100 people watching. It was gone in about half an hour, and the Huntsville Times put it on the front page. The lot sat empty for years. A grocery store and other businesses now cover the site.