Drive-In Movies
Back in the late 1930’s Montgomery was a booming little town. Did you know that Montgomery had a Drive-In Theatre? It was one of the earliest drive-in theaters and it had one of the widest screens in the area. The drive-in was used for many events. For example, it was used for Easter sunrise church services. The choir and ministers would stand on the roof of the concession stand and give the service from there to a lot full of cars and excited people.
The drive-in showed the most recent movies and had a playground for kids. The price to get in? “$1.20 a carload.” In 1949 this was also the site of balloon ascension of the famous balloonist Wood.
Over the course of 32 years that the drive-in was open, there were four huge fires. One of those fires in 1948, consisted of flames from the 110 by 75 foot structure that could be seen from miles away. This particular fire cost them $30,000 worth of damage. The last fire on October 15, 1971 was when they finally decided to close the drive-in for good.
Soon after the fire, the lot was bought and Columbia Oldsmobile dealership moved in its place on Montgomery Road.