“THE OAKS DRIVE-IN”
Probably the most memorable of all the businesses that have lined either side of South Salisbury Boulevard was the once Oaks Drive-In, originated and operated for many years by former County Councilman Hermus W. Lowe. It was located at the intersection of an unpaved county road, running west to Camden Avenue past the residence of the George Wolf’s. Years later when Richard Cooper prepared a plat for the subdivision of the area, the name of Kay Ave. was given to the street, in honor of the Wolf’s daughter – now Mrs. Ted Wycall.
For the high school teenage set of the ‘50’s and ‘60’s, the Oaks became the gathering place, the haven and unofficial Mecca to meet, eat and drink Pepsies. Those were the days of the bobby socks, the fans of Dick Clark, when the lifestyle by current standards would appear very unsophisticated. Drugs were items such as penicillin, sulfa or the prescriptions for youngsters’ bouts with colds, acne and sprained muscles. Generally their wants were limited to hamburgers, milkshakes and maybe a beer.
Teenagers came from as far away as Dover and Cape Charles just to go to the Oaks. Those were the days of back roads drag racing and this was where all the matches were made. Usually when a good race was imminent, you could observe a mass exodus from the Oaks to the designated strip of back road. For those not having a car with good acceleration, there was always the hobby of customizing to the owners taste. The motto of the day was “If it won’t run, chrome it”. “Poppin’ hoods” was a familiar sight at the Oaks.
One of the most popular exercises was driving around the building. Eventually they put in speed bumps to slow people down. I think the record was the night that a boy drove his father’s tractor (as in tractor/trailer) around the Oaks a total of 100 times.
Fights were rare and the only time I remember someone getting knocked down, the recipient of the blow later claimed that he had slipped on a French fry. Usually things were settled by a lot of “jawing”.
If you were lucky enough to get a “stand” outside, that was a cherished place for the remainder of the night. The car-hops would bring you food and drink and you could sit there and observe all the activity.
There was a lot of entertainment to be had for less than $2. Those were the days.
A branch of the Peninsula Bank sits on the site now.
Publishers Notes: There are some articles George wanted me to republish. This is one of them that came from 2009.
Publishers Notes: There are some articles George wanted me to republish. This is one of them that came from 2009.
26 comments:
I remember it well. Hermus was also a member of the House of Delegates and Bob White was the cook...life was so simple then...NO CRIME.
Boy! Have I driven my 1968 396 Camaro around there a lot of times.
It was a place to go and make friends. I have great memories of finding a spot out front and sitting there all night with people stopping by to visit. Mr. Lowe hired security by the name of Ken Hennesey and he became a friend to all the young people. There was respect for a good place to hang out and very few problems occured.
I remember the Oaks well. I'm 76 now but then, (I was in the Wi-Hi class of '51.) it was the place to go. If you have ever watched the TV show "Happy Days", it was a lot like that. We even had our own "Fonzie, the late E. Stewart "Stew" Dana of Salisbury.
A burger and thick milkshake could be had for less than a dollar.
The Oaks was a great place to take a date and to see and be seen.
By the way, Hermus Lowe also owned the Acorn which was out somewhere near where Pohanka's is now. The Acorn never attained the popularity that the Oaks had.
Phil Hotton
The Acorn had the best chocolate zips.
Hermus Lowe was such a nice man, too. Salt of the earth.
Wow, I remember the "21 shrimp in a basket" from the Acorn, Phil.
This was such a pleasant stroll down memory lane, I shared it with my Facebook crowd. Many of them are natives of the Salisbury area and are now scattered to the four corners of our world. Keep the memories coming.
My first cherry coke was at the Oaks!
Smitty240,
Do you remember how the Car Hops would bring your order with straws and napkins to the driver's window and hang it there? Sometimes if we had a car load we would take up a collection to pay the tab.
In those days a "Gang" meant a group of your friends. How times have changed! ----Phil
Ah - The Oaks! Where legends were made! It wasn't all happy days and the Fonz, though. I think some of the lower shore men have never gotten past it. That is where they learned the "benefits" of being cool....and many think they still have to be that way today. Many broken families and lives because "coolness" became all that mattered. Lost in the 60s (and in their 60s) in more ways than one.
I think my parents met there!LOL
Anyone remember Mother-in-Law and Sour Grapes ?????
I remember the Oaks being "the place". We used to stop there after ball games. I enjoyed even if I didn't have money for a soda. It was still fun hanging out with your friends.
Mother-in-Law....a '59 Chevy?
Owned by Henry Haygood?
Sound familiar?
How about "Touch N Go"?
It was a 62 I believe,of course memnory has gone South with age.409 w/3 2's,but yep Henry Haygood.Sour Grapes "I think" was 406 Ford w/2 4's and I remember Touch an Go the name not the car.Lots of good races from Kay Ave to the Bridge of course the "MAN" MSP had some pretty quick hemi's theirselves. Fun days great memories.........
anybody remember "lil bit of soap"?
..."will wash away the tears"...
Not to forget, you HAD to drive or ride round & round the place...waitin' for a "spot". Sometimes the ride around would last for a half hour or more. But, we didn't care. It was always worth it.
Mother-In-Law - Henry Haygood won a lot of races and a lot of the people who he was racings cars. He was a good friend of my ex-husband.
Touch-n-Go was owned by John Parsons. A great guy with an outgoing personality who graduated from Wi-Hi in 1963. His family had L & F sub shop near PGH.
My first date with my then future husband was there. I loved it and many loved it thanks for this blog and George.
I remember the vanilla smash,it was one of a kind.
never would have believed back then that salisbury would become what it is today
Remember bounce off the speed bumps there?
FUN TIMES AT THE OAKS DRIVE INN! HOT CARS, guys and gals..having good fun and hanging out! Head to Johnson Road for the racing of the "hot" cars! Worse thing ever to happen for me there, was my mom and dad came and picked me up out of a guys car! That's how it was in those days! Great times that i will never ever forget! Four gals in a Lincoln Continental with 25 cents thrown in each for a $1.00 worth of gas will get you around the Oaks many times! Thanks Hermus for great times at the Oaks~
Henry Haygood's car was a 61 Impala 348 350 HP 3X2's 4 speed with I believe a 4:10 gear most of the time. Not sure later on but the 62 Sour Grapes Ford was a 3X2 early in it's career.
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