Meadow Bridge Drive-In
W. Virginia 20 and County Route 44/1,
Meadow Bridge,
WV
25976
W. Virginia 20 and County Route 44/1,
Meadow Bridge,
WV
25976
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Boxoffice, Aug. 10, 1970: “The Meadow Bridge Drive-In, built years ago and with a reported record of unsuccessful operation, was reopened recently by Benny Hartley of Crab Orchard. Following extensive advertising and promotion by Hartley, the airer is now attracting large patronage from throughout the area. The drive-in is located on Route 20 south of Meadow Bridge.”
In the 1955-56 Theatre Catalog, the only one in Meadow Bridge WV is the N And R D. I., capacity 125, exec N. Garten. That would be Ned Garten, according to a 2013 article in The Register-Herald, copied on the drive-in’s web site.
The 1955-59 Motion Picture Almanacs also called it the N & R, capacity 125, owner Ned Garten. Garten was trying to sell it in June 1958 (see uploaded newspaper ad), which might be why it dropped out of the 1961-76 editions. The drive-in returned by the 1978 edition as the Meadowbridge (sic), owned by B. Hartley, capacity 180. In the 1980-82 editions, the owner changed to L. Thomas. In 1984, it was J. Boyd. By the 1986 edition, the owner was (Howard) McClanahan, who still owns it today.
The 2013 article covered that period as follows. After Garten’s tenure, it was run by Thomas Theaters. “Then one of the shareholders purchased the location outright. Word on the street was that the theater was going to turn X-rated because its screen faced away from the road. That’s when McClanahan stepped in and decided to make an offer.”
The Meadow Bridge converted to digital in 2013, and McClanahan said the new projector cost more than he paid for the drive-in.
Snack bar is very cheap too. Wide variety of snacks!
No wonder this one is still open, it’s waaaayyyy out in the country. Kind of hard to find & very small. Well kept & clean though.
Approx. location for this drive-in is W Virginia 20 & County Route 44/1.
Homepage:
http://www.mbdrivein.com/