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Kentucky Drive-ins

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Parkette Drive In
Lexington, KY

2010:
2026:
The Parkette Drive In opened in 1951 and offered car hop service. The animated sign is about 35 feet tall. It was built in 1957 and cost $10,000 to produce. It has been estimated that it would cost about $100,000 to build it today. The sign cost about $1,000 per year to maintain the neon. It is believed that this drive-in was inspired by another Parkette Drive-in in West Virginia, most likely Long's Parkette in Kenova. In 2013, a Dine-In Garage was added. In 2022, the Parkette closed and was demolished. The property is now used as a car dealership but the sign remains. It was designated as as a landmark by the city. There are plans to restore the sign. For more, see these websites: 1, 2, and 3. [map]

Conley's Drive-in
Middlesboro, KY
Conley's Drive-in opened in 1955. The pole sign was installed around 2017. [map]

Wonder Whip
Owensboro, KY
The Wonder Whip opened in 1955 was Wyndall's Wonder Whip. There was a different sign on the roof then. It was replaced with this one without the Wyndall's name by 2012. [map]

Wonder Whip
Owensboro, KY
This Wonder Whip second location was built in 2025 in a retro style. [map]

Parker's Drive-in
Paducah, KY
Parker's Drive In has been there since the early 1980s. I don't know if there was another drive-in before that. [map]

Bob's Drive-in
Paducah, KY
Bob's Drive In opened in 1949 as a Dairy Queen. It became Bob's Drive-in in 1960. For more, see this website. [map]

Dairy Cheer
Pikeville, KY
Dairy Cheer has been here since at least the 1970s. The original location in Ashland, KY which opened in the 1950s is gone now. At the chain's peak, there were 29 stores in Kentucky, West Virginia, Ohio, and Tennessee. I believe the only other surviving location is in Prestonsburg, KY. [map]

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