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Historic place

Washington Shores Drive-In

3950 Columbia St, Orlando, FL

A 200-car drive-in for Black audiences that opened in 1950 and was gutted by a fire set by three children in 1962.

📅 1950–1961🏛️ TheaterDemolished
Open on the mapSlide back to 1950

The story

The Washington Shores Drive-In opened on June 14, 1950, with Barbara Stanwyck in East Side, West Side. It was a single-screen drive-in with room for 200 cars, and it served African-American audiences with second-run double features. Cinema Treasures says it operated alongside Orlando's Carver and Lincoln theatres.

The page credits local businessman B.H. Evans as owner, though a commenter could not confirm that and another named different founders. A contributor recalled one-dollar-per-carload nights, with some patrons sneaking in on foot through the woods. The last movie screened on April 28, 1961. In January 1962 three children broke into the concession stand and projection room and set a fire that gutted the building. It was demolished by 1969.

What's There Now

Mostly an empty field with a few shops in the northwest corner, per a 2020 comment.

Everything that was here

Did you know?

It briefly closed in October 1950 and reopened that December, per a commenter.
The address was once listed as 3970 Columbia St.
A commenter reports a foundation behind a Conoco station, but another says it likely is not from the drive-in.

Nearby history

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Orlando Drive-In Theatre

1001 S Orange Blossom Trail · 2.8 km away
The area's first drive-in opened on February 7, 1940, with Vivacious Lady and a Mickey Mouse cartoon.

Goff's Drive-In

212 S Orange Blossom Trl · 3.1 km away
A walk-up ice cream stand in Parramore that served Black and white customers at the same window and kept going through a

Chastain's Restaurant

23 N Orange Blossom Trl · 3.3 km away
A truck-stop-style breakfast spot with a glass radio booth in the parking lot, closed after one last breakfast on Septem

Parliament House

410 N Orange Blossom Trl · 3.6 km away
A 1962 motor inn that became Orlando's best-known gay resort in 1975, and closed in November 2020 when the owners could

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Sourceshttps://cinematreasures.org/theaters/28504