@Mosbee...It is from 1952-54.

Hmm ... that's in West Virginia ... Not Fairfax County, VA.

CCABanjo Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Hmm ... that's in West Virginia ... Not Fairfax
> County, VA.


What's in West Virginia?

DH Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> CCABanjo Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Hmm ... that's in West Virginia ... Not Fairfax
> > County, VA.
>
>
> What's in West Virginia?

Hillbillies

A little more Lake Barcroft Mid Century madness...1955. Let's keep this going...
Attachments:

Remember this place?
Attachments:

Sir Walter...then...now...
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Sleepy Holla Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Sir Walter...then...now...


Damn sleepy, you just keep giving and giving. Next couple weeks I am going to check out my Mom's attic to see if my old yearbooks are still there. I know I can scan some good pics from them. As I remember there may be a few issues of the Springfield Independent newspaper circa late 70's up there too.

Sleepy Holla Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Sir Walter...then...now...


The other Falls Church SWR (Wilston Center) was the site of Blanche's rehearsal dinner. We're still around many years later!

@lbs82...Thanks, I appreciate that...I will not let this die....FFXU HAS to be more than MOM Show and BOAD!

@Blanche...thanks for that info and your constant contributions...I'm sure you will be around much longer :).....I'm foggy, where exactly at Wilston?

Okay folks....one more shot at guessing the location...then I will pull back the curtain. It was in plane sight.
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The Wilston SWR was on the side with the CVS near the Radio Shack maybe next door or maybe even where the Radio Shack is located.

The Fairmont driving range is a puzzler for me, the only driving range that I remember is the Pinecrest #2 where Fair Oaks is now located. Of course, Pinecrest #1 was the largest undeveloped/undesignated track of open land inside the Beltway when it was developed in the early 80s.

Blanche, Thanks for jogging my memory. The Fairmont was new to me when I found it...I already gave a clue before. How about another..it was a drive in range

Sleepy Holla Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Remember this place?


Yumm - ate there many a times.

blanche Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The Wilston SWR was on the side with the CVS near
> the Radio Shack maybe next door or maybe even
> where the Radio Shack is located.
>
> The Fairmont driving range is a puzzler for me,
> the only driving range that I remember is the
> Pinecrest #2 where Fair Oaks is now located. Of
> course, Pinecrest #1 was the largest
> undeveloped/undesignated track of open land inside
> the Beltway when it was developed in the early
> 80s.


Correct me if I'm wrong- but I believe there was another SWR Inn on Rt 1 in the Sacramento Shopping center (Near Ft. Belvoir). Its the big white mansion looking place that's a bank now.

OK I'll take a shot. Was there a driving range on the spot where the Fairmont Condos are now, near fair Oaks Mall?

@ffcograd...good guess, but I am afraid no. Clue 3...don't make a circus of this...

blanche Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Sleepy Holla Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Sir Walter...then...now...
>
>
> The other Falls Church SWR (Wilston Center) was
> the site of Blanche's rehearsal dinner. We're
> still around many years later!


I remember a restaurant called La Boheme in the Wilston Center.
It is where the Baileys Health Center is now. Next to where the grocery store use to be.
I can't picture a SWR in that center, maybe it was before or after the La Boheme??

The Sir Walter Raleigh was there in 1991 and was located down towards route 50 near where the Radio Shack and the chicken place are now.

blanche Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The Sir Walter Raleigh was there in 1991 and was
> located down towards route 50 near where the Radio
> Shack and the chicken place are now.


Oh-OK, The La Boheme was in the 70's.
Thanks Blanche

Sleepy Holla Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> @ffcograd...good guess, but I am afraid no. Clue
> 3...don't make a circus of this...

Um, Baileys Crossroads? There was a driving range at Baileys? There is a Fairmont Street in Falls Church between Rt 50 and Rt 29 Close to Fairview Park Drive, but that neighborhood has been there a long while.

I think that driving range is in Falls Church right where 29 intersects 495...where the current executive golf course is now.

I do believe there was an airstrip at or near Fairview Park many years ago.

fxcograd Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> blanche Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > The Wilston SWR was on the side with the CVS
> near
> > the Radio Shack maybe next door or maybe even
> > where the Radio Shack is located.
> >
> > The Fairmont driving range is a puzzler for me,
> > the only driving range that I remember is the
> > Pinecrest #2 where Fair Oaks is now located.
> Of
> > course, Pinecrest #1 was the largest
> > undeveloped/undesignated track of open land
> inside
> > the Beltway when it was developed in the early
> > 80s.
>
>
> Correct me if I'm wrong- but I believe there was
> another SWR Inn on Rt 1 in the Sacramento Shopping
> center (Near Ft. Belvoir). Its the big white
> mansion looking place that's a bank now.

As far as I remember/know, that white building described above used to be the HQ of Mt. Vernon Realty Co., and sometime before that, it was a hotel. I forget the name, but I have seen the postcard before...it was an old timey hotel, where I think that house was the restaurant with a few rooms in it, and there was a semi-circle of "tourist cabins" behind, where the shopping center is now.

driving range in falls church Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I think that driving range is in Falls Church
> right where 29 intersects 495...where the current
> executive golf course is now.
>
> I do believe there was an airstrip at or near
> Fairview Park many years ago.

Duh- "plane" not plain. OK I am too young to remember it but was there a driving range across RT 7 from the Crossroads airport? Near Jefferson St next to a drive in theater? is Fairmont the name of the owner?
Attachments:

> -----
> > blanche Wrote:
.
>
> As far as I remember/know, that white building
> described above used to be the HQ of Mt. Vernon
> Realty Co., and sometime before that, it was a
> hotel. I forget the name, but I have seen the
> postcard before...it was an old timey hotel, where
> I think that house was the restaurant with a few
> rooms in it, and there was a semi-circle of
> "tourist cabins" behind, where the shopping center
> is now.
OK- looking at the historical aerials it appears that house was there way before everything else around it. So then where was the Alexandria Sir Walter Raleigh Inn? Closer to Beacon Mall?

Inspiring FX CO school architecture. Kids are wimps now, back in my day schools didn't have air conditioning. Those things in the picture are windows, when it got hot you opened them.
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The Alexandria SWR was in the front of Beacon Mall close to US 1 - my brother worked there in the late '70s.

Anyone have pics of the Wagon Wheel Restaurant & Hotel that was located on Fordson Rd where it split from US 1? Hybla Valley near the Penguin Feather. There used to be a Gino's at the fork.

fxcograd Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Inspiring FX CO school architecture. Kids are
> wimps now, back in my day schools didn't have air
> conditioning. Those things in the picture are
> windows, when it got hot you opened them.


Ah, yes! Inspiring architecture, indeed. Look at those artfully-placed, distinctive windows! And, can we talk about that brick work? Why, it is positively masterful...and looks just like all the other county schools built in the mid 60s.

Fxcograd, your post made me think about two of my favorite elementary school memories (also FXCO) in the mid-1970s; when it got too hot in our classroom, our teacher would spring into action...windows open, blinds closed, lights out, stand fan on, heads down..and she'd read to the class. You could have heard a pin drop.

Same classroom, same teacher. Our teacher was standing in the front of the classroom and we heard a knock...at our window! Must have been another hot day, because the teacher waltzed over to the bank of windows, opened the blinds and announced to the class that her son and his friends were outside! Then, she opened the window and in climbed her son and three enormous (to me) high school boys. The guys just came by to say hello, stayed a few minutes, then climbed back out the window. Again, the whole class was in silent awe!

Can you imagine a teacher letting someone into the classroom like that today? Or, what would happen if you tried to climb in a school window during the school day? Sheesh! My kids' school has a fit if you try to pick up a kid a bit early during the afternoon announcements...and that's after being buzzed in, reporting to the office, signing in, etc. I know, times have changed...

driving range in falls church Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I think that driving range is in Falls Church
> right where 29 intersects 495...where the current
> executive golf course is now.
>
> I do believe there was an airstrip at or near
> Fairview Park many years ago.


Fairview Park was "the woods" to us prior to being turned into Fairview Park. No airstrip near there, unless you consider Loehmann's Plaze to be "near there".

From the clues given, I would have to guess that the driving range was across Rt. 7 from the airport on which now sits Skyline. "Circus" being the pony rides and carnival-type rides at the intersection of Rt. 7 and Columbia Pike, as well as the location of the home base for Barnum and Bailey's Circus. Or was it just Bailey's Circus back then?

Low Man Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> driving range in falls church Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > I think that driving range is in Falls Church
> > right where 29 intersects 495...where the
> current
> > executive golf course is now.
> >
> > I do believe there was an airstrip at or near
> > Fairview Park many years ago.
>
>
> Fairview Park was "the woods" to us prior to being
> turned into Fairview Park. No airstrip near
> there, unless you consider Loehmann's Plaze to be
> "near there".
>
> From the clues given, I would have to guess that
> the driving range was across Rt. 7 from the
> airport on which now sits Skyline. "Circus" being
> the pony rides and carnival-type rides at the
> intersection of Rt. 7 and Columbia Pike, as well
> as the location of the home base for Barnum and
> Bailey's Circus. Or was it just Bailey's Circus
> back then?


Good point and thanks for your local knowledge...I do agree with the clues pointing towards the driving range being near Skyline, however, since I never saw a "bingo" by the poster who asked the question, I thought it had to be somewhere else. Hence, my offering of the above answer.

As for woods being where Fairview Park is now...yes, you are right. But remember, Fairview Park was not developed until the early 80's, the time period in which my maps show an air strip in that "area" is from the 1950's or earlier.

30 years + is plenty of time for woods to grow in (look at a vacant lot after about five years of being vacant...some trees have grown in and are reaching nearly ten feet tall), and I am not positive that the airstrip was in fact Fairview Park...the maps I have that show an airstrip in that area are pre-beltway, so it is hard to get a point of reference.

IE: Fairmont Driving Range....

@ffxcograd-Lowman....very good...you are right. Good uses of the clues ffxco.

Thanks for playing...You guys rock.
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9090999 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Low Man Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > driving range in falls church Wrote:
> >
> --------------------------------------------------
>
> > -----
> > > I think that driving range is in Falls Church
> > > right where 29 intersects 495...where the
> > current
> > > executive golf course is now.
> > >
> > > I do believe there was an airstrip at or near
> > > Fairview Park many years ago.
> >
> >
> > Fairview Park was "the woods" to us prior to
> being
> > turned into Fairview Park. No airstrip near
> > there, unless you consider Loehmann's Plaze to
> be
> > "near there".
> >
> > From the clues given, I would have to guess
> that
> > the driving range was across Rt. 7 from the
> > airport on which now sits Skyline. "Circus"
> being
> > the pony rides and carnival-type rides at the
> > intersection of Rt. 7 and Columbia Pike, as
> well
> > as the location of the home base for Barnum and
> > Bailey's Circus. Or was it just Bailey's
> Circus
> > back then?
>
>
> Good point and thanks for your local knowledge...I
> do agree with the clues pointing towards the
> driving range being near Skyline, however, since I
> never saw a "bingo" by the poster who asked the
> question, I thought it had to be somewhere else.
> Hence, my offering of the above answer.
>
> As for woods being where Fairview Park is
> now...yes, you are right. But remember, Fairview
> Park was not developed until the early 80's, the
> time period in which my maps show an air strip in
> that "area" is from the 1950's or earlier.
>
> 30 years + is plenty of time for woods to grow in
> (look at a vacant lot after about five years of
> being vacant...some trees have grown in and are
> reaching nearly ten feet tall), and I am not
> positive that the airstrip was in fact Fairview
> Park...the maps I have that show an airstrip in
> that area are pre-beltway, so it is hard to get a
> point of reference.

For at least the bulk of "the woods" right where Fairview Park is, your maps would have to date back to the 1850s rather than the 1950s for there to have been an airstrip, because there were a number of remnants of the Civil War in those woods. The main one I remember was a arched footbridge over a creek running through there at the bottom of a steep slope. My friend's dad used to go in there with a metal detector, and found numerous bullets and a few uniform buttons dating back to the Civil War. We are talking mid-to-late 60's here.

Not saying that there wasn't an airstrip somewhere around there, but if there was, it is my guess that it would have been west of where the beltway is now, or over where Loehmann's Plaza is now (but that is not all that near, unless you are reading the maps incorrectly). All of whatever that condo complex is in front of Falls Church HS (except the apartments and the TJ library fronting Rt. 50 slightly east of FCHS), as well as the Providence Rec Center and the land Exxon Mobil developed into their HQ was all woods, also, in the 60s.

At the Outdoor Theatre...that I do remember. It was a difficult landing for those little airplanes over the screen.

bubbalou32 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The Alexandria SWR was in the front of Beacon Mall
> close to US 1 - my brother worked there in the
> late '70s.

Was it way over in the corner in front of Giant, where the bank is now?

Sleepy Holla Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> IE: Fairmont Driving Range....
>
> @ffxcograd-Lowman....very good...you are right.
> Good uses of the clues ffxco.
>
> Thanks for playing...You guys rock.

According to the history of Baileys x roads airport, It was a little dangerous around there. Apperently a plane bounced across the roof of the Coca Cola bottling plant coming in and a different plane lost an engine and crashed in the Toys R us parking lot. Ironically, I worked at both places. It would have been hazardous if I was a little older (and the airport still existed). The Coca Cola plant painted "X"s on the roof after the incident and you can see that in the historical aerial photos. Now add flying golf balls close to a runway and you're just asking for trouble.

All States was on rt 29 between Legato and Dixie Hills Rd.

@fxcograd...so funny, golf balls, planes, and open drive-in movies...sounds like the perfect spot for a 50's monster movie.

Now a little Seven Corners flashback.
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bubbalou32 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The Alexandria SWR was in the front of Beacon Mall
> close to US 1 - my brother worked there in the
> late '70s.

Was it way over in the corner in front of Giant, where the bank is now?


I believe it was just to left of the entryway directly across from Beacon Hill Rd.

`

idontlikebeingrightaboutshitlikethisbutiam



Edited 21 time(s). Last edit at 5/31/1967 05:57AM by WingNut.

Last edit at 11/30/2015 01:37PM Last edit at 5/14/2015 03:52PM Last edit at 1/28/2014 05:57AM Last edit at 11/29/2015 01:10PM Last edit at 3/14/2011 11:52PM Last edit at 7/20/2012 04:07AM
Last edit at 6/29/2013 11:18PM Last edit at 3/19/2011 01:02PM Last edit at 3/26/2012 09:07PM



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/20/2015 07:47AM by WingNut.

WingNut Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Inn of the 8 Immortals?
>
> Is that building still there near Home Depot? I
> vaguely remember that one.


It was where the Fuddruckers was sharing the building with Woodies furniture store. Its now some sort of Chinese place, can't remember the name.

It was very casual with carding under ages pukes, me included.

WingNut Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Inn of the 8 Immortals?
>
> Is that building still there near Home Depot? I
> vaguely remember that one.


The building is still there. Next to the parking garage for Home Depot.
It is a restaurant, I think it is called Fortune Seafood now.
It was a Fuddruckers at one time.
I remember back in the 70's it was Inn of the 8 Immortals on one end and Harmony Hut record store on the other end.
I think back in the 60's the whole building was something like a Western Auto.
The Woodies furniture store was actually a different building in the parking lot and it backed up to the apartments next too Seven Corners.
Before it was the Woodies furniture store it was a grocery store I believe.

lbss82 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Okay, this picture is only a couple years old but
> it shows what a huge change the route 7 corridor
> has gone through in just the last couple years.


Was this 2009

Gordon Blvd Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Sleepy Holla Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Great Hot Shoppes pic Gordon...Arlington?
>
>
> gotta love the pike :)
>
> pic unrelated


Thas is one cool foto

Gordon Blvd Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> @chili - there's still one at the ass-end of
> Edsall over in Alex somewhere
>
> @everyone - it's obvious to me that more ppl lived
> closer to the city back in the day. Hard to find
> old pics of stuff in Prince William County. I
> dont think cameras were invented back then out
> there LoLz
>
> I'll do this one for outside the Beltway oldtimers
> - hint: water tower ;)


That looks new

Jumbo Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Grand opening day Jumbo Food. Annandale, VA (next
> to Kmart) around 1975. This store opened
> originally as a Grand Union. When Grand Union
> pulled out of the DC Area it was purchased by
> local family owned Jumbo Food. This company grew
> to what is now Shoppers Food Warehouse. This
> Jumbo converted to the SFW name in the 80's and
> closed in the early 90's. Kmart took over the
> space to enlarge their store.


Wow

Local Historian Honored in Naming of New Park Authority Award

Historian Mayo Stuntz died in May at the age of 97, but his legacy will survive through the new award.
http://vienna.patch.com/groups/local-connections/p/local-veteran-historian-honored-in-naming-of-new-parks-authority-award

Mayo Stuntz was a World War II veteran, a former intelligence officer for the CIA, and one of Vienna's most popular historians and native sons. Stuntz passed away on May 9 at the age of 97, but his legacy will live on through the establishment of the Mayo Stuntz Cultural Stewardship Award, conceived by the Fairfax County Park Authority Board in July.

The award will recognize "outstanding service through the stewardship of historic resources and dedication to parks," as well as "significant contributions toward the understanding, preservation, education and interpretation of history in the county," according to a Park Authority release.

It will be given no more than once a year, but it will only be presented when the Park Authority Board deems a nominee worthy, no matter what time of year, said Park Authority spokesperson Judy Pedersen.

Board member Harold "Hal" Strickland had been considering creating an award in Stuntz's name even before his passing, Pedersen noted, and this summer it took very little encouragement from Strickland to get the rest of the board to agree to the proposal.

The first recipient of the Stuntz Award will be the Sully Foundation, for which Stuntz served as Chairman for more than 20 years. The foundation has collected and donated more than $500,000 toward special projects in the Sully Historic District in Chantilly, Va. Officials from the Parks Authority will formally award the Sully Foundation its award in November.

After completing 25 years of service with the CIA, Stuntz became a historian in his hometown of Vienna, deeply rooting himself in the tradition of the area. He authored three books covering local history and is a former president of the Fairfax Historical Society. He was also the first Chairman of the Freeman House, a precursor of Historic Vienna, Inc.

For 10 years he and his wife, Constance, owned and operated Antiques Uniques, an antiques store in Vienna.

"He just had a tremendous impact on the county and the community," Pedersen said. "He made great things happen."
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great picture of fairfax landmark TT Reynolds...my GMU waitressing days gone by

Sleepy knows you like visuals....a Springfield memory.
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Sleepy Holla Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Sleepy knows you like visuals....a Springfield
> memory.


I remember an H&H that sold Triumph MC parts (& lawnmower) on 236 near the Penguin Feather in the late 70's.Dumped a lot of cash there on Triumph parts.

Anyone know the back story of what appears to be a dilapidated service station located off Braddock rd in Fairfax?

https://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&ll=38.830706,-77.355265&spn=0.000002,0.001444&t=h&z=20&layer=c&cbll=38.830705,-77.355369&panoid=IQsAY7gn3Uh9vlzLAtkPmA&cbp=12,17.07,,1,-4.43

there's a dentist in the middle of vienna who has a coffe table book. it's "Tysons Corner throughout it's developement"

if your really interested find the book. it's full of tyson's corner photo's throughout it's development.

The Bunny Man. Clifton.

I always thought that was just a garage in somebodys yard? That's where the sign has been up at least 15 years saying a church is going to be built there. Used to a guy on a chopper going in and out of there all the time, haven't seen him in a while though?

Hay Zeus Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Anyone know the back story of what appears to be a
> dilapidated service station located off Braddock
> rd in Fairfax?
>
> https://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&ll=38.830706,-7
> 7.355265&spn=0.000002,0.001444&t=h&z=20&layer=c&cb
> ll=38.830705,-77.355369&panoid=IQsAY7gn3Uh9vlzLAtk
> PmA&cbp=12,17.07,,1,-4.43


bing is good for at least one thing:
http://binged.it/1cj1j4W

also, huntwood manor dr is missing a house on bing

Slipped to next page! Sleepy will not let that happen again!

Some Mid Century Falls Church eye-candy.
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Sleepy Holla Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Slipped to next page! Sleepy will not let that
> happen again!
>
> Some Mid Century Falls Church eye-candy.

Well I'd like to know the inside story on Melpar. That place was there as long as I could remember until it was rehabbed last year (I think it became e- systems, but same building)

My dad worked at Melpar circa. 1963-1968.

The old Melpar building was completely renovated and now houses the Defense Health Headquarters (DHHQ). Old Melpar Building: http://www.fairfaxunderground.com/forum/read/2/498397.html

Melpar was bought out by a couple of companies, the last being Raytheon. I interviewed at that building for Raytheon and was surprised that the interior resembled an old school. Very strange.

Melpar on Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melpar

...The "inside story" from the the melpar matchcover.

Perhaps this 1957 Sleepy Hollow home was part of the "living conditions second to none in the nation"...
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I wonder how many billions of tax dollars were thrown down the Melpar rathole.

...don't you just love the 1 comment troll posts that have nothing to do w/ this great thread? Anyhow...

Is this building still around....circa 1954. Pretty cool that it had a digital clock back then. 363 Lee Highway Fairfax
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@Sleepy Holla

I wonder if there are still any original owners in that development, with original appliances, fixtures, etc?

This is a great thread, enjoyed reading it.
I found a bunch of old photos of Franconia here:

http://fairy-lamp.com/Franconia/Franconia_Main.html

I don't recognize any of the buildings portrayed there except for the Laurel Grove School which is still standing. The church burned down 9 years ago and the congregation has never agreed on how to rebuild it.

The Hayes Grocery Store is kind of interesting.. apparently it lasted until the 80s? 90s? I tried to figure out where it stood, from Historical Aerials it looks like it may have been near the corner of Beulah and the parkway, where Festival at Manchester Lakes is now. It would have been over on the west end of the site where the Dunkin Donuts and Lucky's is now.

Is this building still around....circa 1954

Yes, it is - it's the "Cardinal Bank" building across from Dar Cars used cars. In fact, the white house behind it is still there - it's the beauty shop. You can see the old High school (PVI) further down the pic.

@Zeus...I pretty sure that some original owners are still around and the homes are still fairy original. I was in quite a few of those homes growing up and many were purchased when they came to this area. The same with the Barcroft area...see the home info I had linked on page 20...1958 and everything inside was original including the Madmen curved bar.

Sleepy Holla Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> ...The "inside story" from the the melpar
> matchcover.
>
> Perhaps this 1957 Sleepy Hollow home was part of
> the "living conditions second to none in the
> nation"...


Wow- I are an engineer, and that sounds better than the place I work now! Where do I sign up!?

And I get to live in Sleepy Hollow Estates too? Them is pretty expensive digs now compared to what we got in south county.

Thanks for the inside of the matchbook, Sleepy Holla

And thanks to Springfielder for the links

Caption is "387 seniors and every one drove a mustang". From the Edison HS Class of 73 page. I swear I owned the same mustang 10 years later- and by then it had a lot more rust.

EHS Class of 73 - you got a reunion in Nov.
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Radian Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> This is a great thread, enjoyed reading it.
> I found a bunch of old photos of Franconia here:
>
> http://fairy-lamp.com/Franconia/Franconia_Main.htm
> l


Don Hakenson (associated with the Franconia Museum) does civil war bus tours a couple times a year. he does a really good job. If you like history of that era I would definitely recommend the tours. And Don are an EHS graduate too!

Radian Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> This is a great thread, enjoyed reading it.
> I found a bunch of old photos of Franconia here:
>
> http://fairy-lamp.com/Franconia/Franconia_Main.htm
> l
>
> I don't recognize any of the buildings portrayed
> there except for the Laurel Grove School which is
> still standing. The church burned down 9 years ago
> and the congregation has never agreed on how to
> rebuild it.
>
> The Hayes Grocery Store is kind of interesting..
> apparently it lasted until the 80s? 90s? I tried
> to figure out where it stood, from Historical
> Aerials it looks like it may have been near the
> corner of Beulah and the parkway, where Festival
> at Manchester Lakes is now. It would have been
> over on the west end of the site where the Dunkin
> Donuts and Lucky's is now.

Got answer on Hayes for you from a long time Beulah resident

Hayes' store is still there, just past Windsor Avenue and the 7-11 on Beulah Road. it was a grocery store in the 1940's - 1950's, then Kreigel's furniture. Now, I believe, it is a dry cleaners place. The building sits right next to Nall's Produce, between Nall's and the 7-11. In the early days, as you can see in the photo, there were gas pumps there, they were long gone when I was growing up

nostalogic post about a place called "fairfax", a complete god-damn-mother-fucking-god-forsaken-shit-hole-douche-bag place, me likes this.

Yea, really love the random troll posts...Damn...maybe I should give this up...

Here is some more "GFS Fairfax" love...tune in to that station baby...
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Guess who?
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Sleepy Holla Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Yea, really love the random troll
> posts...Damn...maybe I should give this up...
>
> Here is some more "GFS Fairfax" love...tune in to
> that station baby...


Don't let the trolls get you down Sleepy.
Thanks for the good work finding this stuff and taking me back to my younger days.

Radian Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> This is a great thread, enjoyed reading it.
> I found a bunch of old photos of Franconia here:
>
> http://fairy-lamp.com/Franconia/Franconia_Main.htm
> l
>
> I don't recognize any of the buildings portrayed
> there except for the Laurel Grove School which is
> still standing. The church burned down 9 years ago
> and the congregation has never agreed on how to
> rebuild it.
>
> The Hayes Grocery Store is kind of interesting..
> apparently it lasted until the 80s? 90s? I tried
> to figure out where it stood, from Historical
> Aerials it looks like it may have been near the
> corner of Beulah and the parkway, where Festival
> at Manchester Lakes is now. It would have been
> over on the west end of the site where the Dunkin
> Donuts and Lucky's is now.


Hayes Grocery was gone by the early 80's. I grew up in the area (Franconia, Mark Twain, Edison grad) and played little league at Beulah Park. The grocery store was long gone by the time I was in the 7th grade (1983).

It's amazing all the places that are gone from then. Kingstowne, Manchester Lakes just dug up and buried my childhood! ha!

JFC Wrote:
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> Sleepy Holla.... I remember when they started
> construction on those two establishments. If I
> remember correctly, What is now the Harvest Moon
> used to a Kroeger food store.

I knew that Harvest Moon had to be some sort of grocery store. It just has that look to the building. Would love to get some confirmation that it was a Kroger back in the day.

Springfielder Wrote:
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> Guess who?


Ohh, Ohh, Mr. Kotter! I know!

Its the WHFS crew!

As a kid I wondered what those green "mail boxes" were that said "NOT FOR DEPOSIT OF MAIL" but never did find out. What the heck were they for?

green boxes Wrote:
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> As a kid I wondered what those green "mail boxes"
> were that said "NOT FOR DEPOSIT OF MAIL" but never
> did find out. What the heck were they for?


AFAIK they were military drop boxes of some sort...There was one of those across the street from the house I grew up in....as a kid I never saw anyone open it up until one day during late 1960's a guy in Army uniform driving an olive green sedan & carrying a brief case opened it removing a large brown envelope & drove away...

Memories Wrote:
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> JFC Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Sleepy Holla.... I remember when they started
> > construction on those two establishments. If I
> > remember correctly, What is now the Harvest
> Moon
> > used to a Kroeger food store.
>
> I knew that Harvest Moon had to be some sort of
> grocery store. It just has that look to the
> building. Would love to get some confirmation
> that it was a Kroger back in the day.


No photographic evidence, but it was definitely a Kroger grocery store circa 1964-1968. It was also, after that, a slot racing car track venue, and someone also said that it was a restaurant named Black Angus at some point in time also. I lived in the JV apartments (they are now condos--Kingley Commons, maybe) immediatly to the west of that shopping center back then.

mystery of green box Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> green boxes Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > As a kid I wondered what those green "mail
> boxes"
> > were that said "NOT FOR DEPOSIT OF MAIL" but
> never
> > did find out. What the heck were they for?
>
>
> AFAIK they were military drop boxes of some
> sort...There was one of those across the street
> from the house I grew up in....as a kid I never
> saw anyone open it up until one day during late
> 1960's a guy in Army uniform driving an olive
> green sedan & carrying a brief case opened it
> removing a large brown envelope & drove away...


Wow! I have not thought about those things in years. There was one in Kings Park near the parliament pool.
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> No photographic evidence, but it was definitely a
> Kroger grocery store circa 1964-1968. It was
> also, after that, a slot racing car track venue,
> and someone also said that it was a restaurant
> named Black Angus at some point in time also. I
> lived in the JV apartments (they are now
> condos--Kingley Commons, maybe) immediatly to the
> west of that shopping center back then.


The Shopping Center was called "the Black Angus Shopping Center" for a long time -- even after the Black Angus went under and Harvest Moon had taken the space over. The Kroger is something I'm not remembering but it wasn't my timeframe for grocery shopping. There was a Kroger on Backlick Road in Annandale near 236, facing the Thom McAn. The building is now something, wait for it, Korean...

From USPS website
"drop box - The olive green noncollection receptacle where letter carriers leave mail on the line of travel for later pickup and delivery by another letter carrier. (Also called relay box.)"

Steve is correct. We had one near our house as a kid. I remember watching our letter carrier (we called him a "mailman" in those days) unlocking it and moving bundles of mail in and out.

Who remembers the great gas "shortage" of the summer of 79?
I got my drivers license in '78 and I remember my dad making me take a different car every few days to wait in gas lines while I was on summer vacation from school. He even forced me to take our elderly neighbors car and get it filled. The neighbors car had no A-C and not even an AM radio. I baked in the sun for hours in that thing. I waited at the Ravensworth phillips66 or at Rolling road Mobil. My dad was freaking out that gas had gone above 70 cents per gallon.
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I remember it well. During the peak of the crisis, I had my '68 Mustang parked on the street. There was a collision that pushed one of the cars into my Mustang and crushed it against a tree next to the curb. When I saw it my first reaction wasn't about the vehicle; it was about the full tank of gas I had just stood in line to get that was now leaking out of the punctured tank onto the street.

My Dad told me a story about there being a gas line wrapped around the corner at the Amoco station that was at Barron Cameron and 7. He said a guy with a Amoco shirt went to each car and told everyone they could only get 10 dollars worth of gas and they needed to pay in advance so they could move the cars through quickly once the station opened. Of course when the station opened the motorists found out there was no pre-pay plan in effect and the guy with the Amoco shirt was long gone with a roll of cash in his pocket. My Dad said he did not get ripped off because he told the guy he was paying by credit card so he just went on to the next car. Dad said the cops had to be called because some people were giving the gas station employees a hard time and a small riot was in the works.

mystery of green box Wrote:
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> green boxes Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > As a kid I wondered what those green "mail
> boxes"
> > were that said "NOT FOR DEPOSIT OF MAIL" but
> never
> > did find out. What the heck were they for?
>
>
> AFAIK they were military drop boxes of some
> sort...There was one of those across the street
> from the house I grew up in....as a kid I never
> saw anyone open it up until one day during late
> 1960's a guy in Army uniform driving an olive
> green sedan & carrying a brief case opened it
> removing a large brown envelope & drove away...
> From USPS website
"drop box - The olive green noncollection receptacle where letter carriers leave mail on the line of travel for later pickup and delivery by another letter carrier. (Also called relay box.)" > Steve is correct. We had one near our house as a kid. I remember watching our letter carrier (we called him a "mailman" in those days) unlocking it and moving bundles of mail in and out.

Not sure about the rest of the green boxes out there 4 to 5 decades ago but I know what I saw & more importantly know what I didn't see...In 17 years I never saw anyone put anything in or take anything out of that box with exception of the one fellow in O.D. uniform...Saw many mail carrier that walked the route with shoulder bag in the neighborhood. Never saw any mailman open that particular green box...This one was only green with a few numbers stenciled on the back facing away from street....no other markings except the heart & arrow type graffiti scratched in the paint by us kids in the area...

Rosslyn Mtn Boys

Good band.

Fighting to keep on page 1...

Can't find much info on this old Fairfax Ford dealer...Erwin....anyone?
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Oh well...you people have been great...

Sleepy Holla Wrote:
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> Fighting to keep on page 1...
>
> Can't find much info on this old Fairfax Ford
> dealer...Erwin....anyone?


Page 1? More like Page 24...

Don't give up Sleepy! Lots of folks away on vacation!

1950s pics of Columbia Hardware and Appliance store located at 3102 Columbia Pike. Building still stands.
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Found on a Hot Rod Forum..

No other history.. I believe (from pictures in Ted Britt Ford) that Ted Britt started doing business in 1959..
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Nice pull Sleepy and GeezerDude!!!!
I tried calling FAIRFAX 799 to get more info on Erwin but got nothing lol!

@springfielder, Nice! I think my dad took me there a time or two so he could get some washers for our sink faucets. Back in those days Dads everywhere had to deal with changing those darn washers a couple times a year.

Regarding the Harvest Moon building. It may have been a Kroger at some point, but it most likely was built as a Safeway, before 1950. Safeway built the same store all over the country and that building has many of the Safeway features, including the buttress columns along the sides. The Merchant's Tire store at Annandale and 50 appears to be the same building. There is a similar building at Glebe Rd and Pershing Dr. in Arlington that still has the 1960s Safeway interior. Kroger had a very small presences in the DC area, pulling out around 1965. They were in the process of building a store in Annandale, but before it opened, they sold their stores to Consumers Supermarkets (Co-op). There was a Consumers Supermarket where the Giant Food store was recently built at Graham & 50. Safeway also had a store across the Graham where the Spanish grocery is now.

AU 08 Wrote:
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> The Merchant's Tire store at Annandale and 50
> appears to be the same building.
>

The Merchant's Tire building was a grocery store back in the day. I remember going in there with my parents but I can't remember the name of it.

I also remember the Consumers supermarket at Loehmann's Plaza and the Safeway that was across the street. There use to be a Drug Fair next door to the Safeway.