To avoid these ads, REGISTER NOW!

Urban Archeology: Garages and Workspaces in Virginia and the Carolinas

W

Wanna Ride

Well-known member
Joined
Jul 28, 2010
Messages
2,790
During the late 80's and early 90's I worked for Cellar Door concerts and we did a lot of shows at the Mosque. But haven't been there since about '93 or so.

You don't happen to have any pictures of the Boathouse in Norfolk, do you? I went by there back in May, for the first time in about 20 years, and it was sad.
 
To avoid these ads, REGISTER NOW!
OP
P

phartman

Well-known member
Joined
May 25, 2009
Messages
839
Location
Richmond, VA
Last edited:
OP
P

phartman

Well-known member
Joined
May 25, 2009
Messages
839
Location
Richmond, VA
More empty gas stations everywhere. If these were in my hometown, they'd be snatched up in a minute. I am envious.



What a wonderful mid-century design at this roadside rest stop:



This building had been a gas station, but judging from the ghost lettering- Buck's Penthouse- it might have been an adult bookstore at the end of its useful life. Now the roof is gone, and nature is reclaiming it all.





 
Last edited:
W

Wanna Ride

Well-known member
Joined
Jul 28, 2010
Messages
2,790
OP
P

phartman

Well-known member
Joined
May 25, 2009
Messages
839
Location
Richmond, VA
More from the Florida Panhandle ramble.

This sort of roadside stand used to be commonly found, almost gone now. This one was pretty quiet.







Combo mid-century restaurant, gas station, and sundries store, now long gone.



Adjacent were these wonderful cabins, left over from a long time ago. Funny that the cabins were in better shape than the more modern-day restaurant building. The house to the right looks like it served as the office, and there was at least one other room for rent located there. From the very early days of motoring.





No idea what this used to be. Heavy duty truck garage? Dunno, but it was handsome in its time.




 
Last edited:
OP
P

phartman

Well-known member
Joined
May 25, 2009
Messages
839
Location
Richmond, VA
From Tallahassee, I turned North to the lovely Thomasville, GA to end my Florida ramble. Ran into this roadside relic just outside of town, the now empty Ship Ahoy drive-in restaurant.






Must have been quite the spot for the car scene way back when. This picture was in the front window:





And speaking of cool restaurant designs, how about this one that I found on Pinterest. Again, Thomasville:





Repurposed shop, now a restaurant/nightspot. Lots of murals downtown:



And this old soul of lodging from the day, The Imperial Hotel. If those walls could talk....

 
Last edited:
OP
P

phartman

Well-known member
Joined
May 25, 2009
Messages
839
Location
Richmond, VA
From the web:



Greenville, NC



Old Greenville, NC Edsel dealership:



Parrish Ford, Benson, NC 1966



Rock Hill, SC 1960



Fayetteville, NC way back when...



Same building now:



NC Highway Patrol clip on YouTube, 1956:

 
Last edited:
Y

yaidunno

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 10, 2011
Messages
1,336
Location
WI
OP
P

phartman

Well-known member
Joined
May 25, 2009
Messages
839
Location
Richmond, VA
yaidunno said:
The lights! Save those lights!

Somehow i suspect they have long been crushed and melted.
Click to expand...

You never know...these folks are in Richmond, and pretty sharp on pulling nice items out of the pile headed for the scrapper. They have a new lighting restoration service, and some very nice finds.

http://www.caravatis.com/Lighting.html

They will dismantle entire houses or buildings. They are the largest architectural salvage company in the East. They have an impressive complex in Old Manchester, a former industrial neighborhood in downtown Richmond. Operating there since 1939. Great folks.







We just finished a house at the coast, and used many items from their 7 buildings of saved materials. So if you have a new garage, but make it look like it is old, these are the folks to help you. Or if you are restoring an old garage, you'll want this place as a source for the architectural elements you may need.

Worth a phone call or visit. I can spend hours there.

http://www.caravatis.com/
 
Last edited:
OP
P

phartman

Well-known member
Joined
May 25, 2009
Messages
839
Location
Richmond, VA
I noticed that this thread just went over 100,000 views. It's been a blast, guys. Lots of fun getting out and keeping the roads hot just to find these old sites. Look for more to come. Can't stand the idea of sitting around and not discovering what might be in my own back yard.

 
OP
P

phartman

Well-known member
Joined
May 25, 2009
Messages
839
Location
Richmond, VA
I pass by this fine old garage every trip through Havalock, NC right on US 70. It's the type physical plant I'd love to own myself.



The owner must be a kindred spirit...always interesting stuff for sale, here an early Willys and a outboard motor.



And the residence is a good example of "country" modernism. The builder knew just enough about the styles that were sweeping the nation in the '50s and '60s to add a touch of funkiness. Glad to see this one has survived. Block and brick construction.



And just down the road to the West is another example, complete with Pontiac Bonneville cruiser just waiting for restoration. Package deal? The signs said "No Trespassing."



What remains of Smith's Store. On the roadbed that was once old Highway 70, before they moved the road and widened it. I am sure on a lonely night headed to the beach, those gas pumps were a welcomed sight. Same for the small building out back. That the "restroom" facility, aka, Johnnyhouse.



Speaking of restrooms, the State of NC recently constructed this rest area on 17- the Old Ocean Highway- just north of New Bern. The design school and architecture program at NC State in Raleigh has had a beneficial influence on what the state constructs these days. Very pleasing modern design. And a great facility...I no longer have to duck behind trees and barns.





How many times have we seen this layout? Store in front with gas pumps, and garage out behind? These examples are quickly passing away through neglect.



And directly across the road is this now long-gone competitor....

 
Last edited:
C

CitadelBlue

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 1, 2009
Messages
710
Location
Northern VA
Once was once a gas station is now a BBQ place...........Full Service BBQ in Maryville, TN http://fullservicebbq.com/ Just on the other side of the Tail of the Dragon ...... http://tailofthedragon.com/

img_9645_72.jpg
 
OP
P

phartman

Well-known member
Joined
May 25, 2009
Messages
839
Location
Richmond, VA
phartman said:
Service station comes back to life as a barbeque joint. They still sell gas. Great combo for adaptive reuse. East Tennessee, Highway 11E



Click to expand...

Same place??? See post #203 that I put up a couple years ago on my own trip to East Tennessee. Great minds thinking alike?
 
OP
P

phartman

Well-known member
Joined
May 25, 2009
Messages
839
Location
Richmond, VA
On 301 south of Emporia near the NC line, one of those vintage workhorse garages:





Seaboard, NC has been on my visit list for several years. Got there recently. This handsome guy is smack dab downtown, an old car dealership if I had to guess:



Uh-oh...

Yes, we've got trouble, trouble, trouble
Oh, yes, we got trouble here,
We got big, big trouble
With a capital 'T'
And that rhymes with 'P'
And that stands for pool....




What a handsome facade on this now empty warehouse:


On down the road, east of Tarboro:



Enfield, NC



 
Last edited:
W

Wanna Ride

Well-known member
Joined
Jul 28, 2010
Messages
2,790
phartman said:
Seaboard, NC has been on my visit list for several years. Got there recently. This handsome guy is smack dab downtown, an old car dealership if I had to guess:

Click to expand...

I would love to buy a place just like this, to live in. Refurb the front half as my garage, and refurb the back half into a pretty decent apartment. I could retire in there, and be perfectly happy with never needing to build a "real" house.

Thanks for sharing all these pics, I love them!
 
OP
P

phartman

Well-known member
Joined
May 25, 2009
Messages
839
Location
Richmond, VA
Yes, I have the same dream. Recently been eyeing this old building for a garage/office/apartment, but the municipality that owns it won't let it go. An old EMS building that hasn't been used in a long time. Maybe someday....





 
To avoid these ads, REGISTER NOW!
OP
P

phartman

Well-known member
Joined
May 25, 2009
Messages
839
Location
Richmond, VA
Highway 13 in Eastern NC:



An old car dealership, now a source for Buicks and parts:





Whitakers, NC. I apologize for the poor photograph, but I was being watched by some suspicious characters. They did not want any cameras around. This type of garage was quite common at one time, before the EPA and OSHA came along.



Ghost sign, downtown Whitakers:






 
Last edited:
W

Wanna Ride

Well-known member
Joined
Jul 28, 2010
Messages
2,790
Been through a lot of these very same towns, many times back 25+ years ago. And then again a couple times just this summer. A real heart-warming trip through some old stomps.

This is officially my new favorite thread. Thanks for sharing all of this with us.
 
OP
P

phartman

Well-known member
Joined
May 25, 2009
Messages
839
Location
Richmond, VA
Thanks, guys. It's lots of fun to go find these places. The landscape is changing and fallong into disuse. In my mind these industrial/garage/workplaces are all part of our hertitage. They deserve the recognition.

More is coming. Stay tuned!

Pete
 
OP
P

phartman

Well-known member
Joined
May 25, 2009
Messages
839
Location
Richmond, VA
It used to be- and it is almost never the case today- that all over the South there were handmade signs that provided clues to the underlying culture. Two groups come to mind: signs of scriptural quotations from the Bible:



The religious stuff is almost gone. Very occassionally I will see something small, usually nailed to a tree, but even that is pretty rare.



The other type sign I never, ever see anymore are handpainted political signs. There used to be, for example, Impeach Earl Warren signs everywhere courtesy of the John Birch Society, but they are gone from the landscape. All types of political viewpoints were expressed in these signs and billboards. In NC as recently as the '70s, it was nothing to see KKK signs all over the eastern part of the state. Gone now. I never see them.



We have successfully sanitized the landscape, either through political correctness or just indifference and laziness on the part of would-be signpainters with no desire anymore to pick up a brush. We used to be a culture with much to say, and we didn't really care who we offended.

So imagine my surprise when I ran across this old gas station/store near Whitakers, NC, and a fairly recently painted sign on the side of the building:



And what exactly was the sign promoting???



Yup, cockfighting. Interesting, but there it was in plain sight. I have no idea what this is all about. That said, the fellas next door at the body shop were watching me closely, and the gentleman across the road was glaring at me. So you will understand the poor composition of the pictures I took, out the window of my moving pickup truck. It was expedient to get out of there quickly.

Interesting, indeed.
 
Last edited:
OP
P

phartman

Well-known member
Joined
May 25, 2009
Messages
839
Location
Richmond, VA
An otherwise unremarkable building, but the entrance and front facade? Well, how about that facade....An electric motor rebuilding shop in Tarboro, NC.






Murals on a closed drive-in restaurant outside wall:










Ghost sign for a dry cleaner:

 
Last edited:
Y

yaidunno

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 10, 2011
Messages
1,336
Location
WI
Thanks again for taking us on your journey. Excellent dialogue to go along with the photos.
 
OP
P

phartman

Well-known member
Joined
May 25, 2009
Messages
839
Location
Richmond, VA
An excellent Saturday of knocking around my hometown, just ramblin' around shooting pics and looking at old buildings.

One of the icons of old-style parts stores here in Richmond is Brandin' Iron Auto Parts down in Southside from McGuire Veteran's Hospital.



Ralph is the owner, and has been since 1981. He's a classic GTO owner and appreciated that I, too, showed up in some vintage tin.





He told me the place used to be a roadhouse/restaurant/dance hall with a Western theme. Some of the murals are still found on the walls:





From Ralph's I went over to Hull Street and visited with my buddies at Hull Street Outlet. We stop at all places with missles displayed in the front:



The Outlet specializes in surplus military along with vintage office, factory and industrial furniture. You just go through this doorway, and it's all there in the back:





Lots of modern stuff, but also some fine vintage pieces. This very nice drafting table was only $100. A good buy, but if I brought home another my wife might just shoot me. Don't need that.



On from the Outlet to Commerce Road. Passed this really terrific shop-made sign at Standard Auto Parts:



Throughout this industrial section of Richmond called "Manchester", factory after factory after industrial space is being converted to condos. I swear they run the bulldozers at night. This building was formerly Miller Manufacturing, now Hipsterville.





Can't go without breakfast on a Saturday, so I stopped at Sister's Cafe for the Real Deal Meal. Eggs, grits, bacon, fried apples and coffee. I was hungry, and took a bite of eggs before realizing I needed to take a pic. Sorry, my bad. Delicious, quick, and with a friendly smile. Highly recommended. How many factory hands have passed through these doors? Dunno.





Tomorrow, more from my excellent day a-field in the '34 Henry and pics of a couple discoveries that jumped into the bed of the truck while I wasn't looking because they needed a place at our house. Stay tuned.

Marty Stuart and the Fabulous Superlatives
"Truck Drivin' Man"

 
Last edited:
P

Premium08

Well-known member
Joined
Jun 6, 2014
Messages
362
Location
Littleton, NC
Wow, very cool thread. I live in Jarratt Va(soon to be Littleton, NC) and my works office is in Roanoke Rapids, NC. I travel all over VA and NC for work so I've been through and worked in a majority of the towns you posted. I will be keep a better eye out for older buildings from now on. Nice work
 
C

Cougar67

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 19, 2009
Messages
868
Location
Virginia
I really enjoy the posts about Richmond. Hull Street Outlet is on Jeff Davis at Bells Road and has been for at least 20 years. I guess they used to be on Hull. It's sad to see the manufacturing area get hipsterized. I preferred the neglected buildings.
 
OP
P

phartman

Well-known member
Joined
May 25, 2009
Messages
839
Location
Richmond, VA
Cougar67 said:
I really enjoy the posts about Richmond. Hull Street Outlet is on Jeff Davis at Bells Road and has been for at least 20 years. I guess they used to be on Hull. It's sad to see the manufacturing area get hipsterized. I preferred the neglected buildings.
Click to expand...

Thanks for your comments about dear old Richmond and HSO.

Jerry Finn has owned and operated Hull Street Outlet for more than 40 years. It started out as a used office furniture business, but now is more military gear than anything else. But at the height of the old business model, Jerry bought 300 tractor trailer loads of office furniture from Prudential Insurance when they converted from the old Shaw-Walker and General Fireproofing pieces to more modern modular arrangement with cubicles. Jerry tells me that less and less of the early 20th-century type furniture is showing up, there is little interest in it other than on the part of collectors, and the idea behind offices is in flux. He pointed out to me yesterday in an advertisement, most new office desks don't have drawers. Everything is electronic. No desk drawers? Huh? Yup.

As you know, the Jeff Davis corridor south of the city is still a pretty rough spot. I made a wrong turn yesterday morning trying to cut over from Bells Road to Commerce Road and ended up in a really bad place. The saving grace was that my '34 truck was such an unexpected sight that the drug dealers, thugs, and hoodlums didn't know what to make of it and left me alone.

In many parts of this section of Southside, it has become predominently Spanish speaking. Great food, but the gentrification efforts- in fact, any effort to gussy up the area- is not yet in evidence.

Next door on Commerce Road, the transformation of Old Manchester is nothing short of astonishing. It isn't unlike what is going on North of the river in Scott's Addition. Almost all of the manufacturing is gone, repurposed into living space, and the young white collar crowd has moved in. The scores of blue-collar restaurants, bars, barbershops, autoparts stores and related are gone gone gone. The neighborhood garage that we celebrate here on The Journal is pretty well disappeared in these parts, too. Only the heavy-duty over-the-road truck facilities are still here due to the closeness and easy on/off to I-95.

Hip neighborhood only remain that way if there is a steady, consistent presence of funk. And oddly, the more the hipsters move in and take over, the less funky and soulful places stay. So the very elements that attract the young- the oddball character, blue collar vibe, and working stiff landscape- is what is driven away by those who profess a kindred spirit. The young want easy parking, goat cheese on the menu, dry cleaners, small batch whiskey, and groceries that sell organic only.

Time changes everything, I suppose. Stay tuned, more changes are in the works, I would bet. 25 years from now you'd never know what these places used to be like.
 
Last edited:
OP
P

phartman

Well-known member
Joined
May 25, 2009
Messages
839
Location
Richmond, VA
A few more pics from Saturday's ramble through Manchester and Southside Richmond's industrial neighborhoods....

How did I miss this restored depot warehouse, just down the road from Caravatti's architectural salvage company that I mentioned in post #533? I've passed it dozens of times, but never noticed the managable size. Terrific size. What a wonderful personal garage/shop this would make. Ten or twenty years ago, this type of building would have gone for a song, very cheap. Today? You won't believe how expensive. So many buildings in the neighborhood are repurposed, and already taken. But this one is a nice one.



This factory site, for instance, already converted to condos:



I can't imagine Crawford Manufacturing will remain in this state. Very likely another future residence.



Decided to head home, and took one last sidetrip through an adjacent residential neighborhood. Before the interest in tiny houses and micro houses, people just built small residences. Here are two of my favorites from Westover Hills that are postage stamp size, but huge on charm:





Ghost sign in the alley of the neighborhood beauty parlor that is now repurposed to a farm-to-table restuarant. Richmond is now quite the foodie city:



And I promised to show you a couple items that I bought- errr, I mean to say "jumped into my truck"- while at Caravatti's. First is a vintage metal mirror from a local hotel. Ben told me they had bought about 200 of these items when the building was demolished. I'll hang it in the bathroom of my shop. Stainless steel frame, original glass, glass and brass towel bar. Great shape.



And the second item is a mantle for our daughter's apartment. This one is unusual: late Greek Revival, but with Deco sensibilities. The item was saved from Rose Hill Plantation outside of Richmond, ca 1850. It has square nails, is pegged, and still has the adz marks in the back where the primary mantle board was hewn from heart pine. But the lines to the top board are screaming 20th-century Deco and Machine Age. Very plain in its lines. There were three, but this one did not have the ornamentation of the other pair. I suspect this one was not in a main room. Great example of how early artifacts anticipate later styles that are yet to emerge.

It will clean up really well. I'll install it in her apartment living room as a false fireplace surround. Nice!



 
Last edited:
OP
P

phartman

Well-known member
Joined
May 25, 2009
Messages
839
Location
Richmond, VA
Yes, I did haul the stuff home in the '34. The mantel fit like a glove in the bed, and the mirror was up in the cab. Everything made it safely home.

But usually, I use the '90 F150. It's been a great hauler, and with the cap over the bed, keeps everything out of the weather. It's been all over the East Coast hauling all manner of collectibles. I took it to South Georgia to tow home a Simmons Sea Skiff I restored; and as far West as the West Virginia Panhandle to bring home a Y-block motor. It survived a tornado in East Tennessee, and has traveled most of the Blue Ridge Parkway. It's been a great truck.

 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
To avoid these ads, REGISTER NOW!
Top Bottom