Remember when... (Charleston, Hanahan, Isle of Palms: hotel, neighborhood, camping)

[Geechie North]

Originally Posted by jetsfan16

I remember the days when there was nothing on Dorchester Rd. past Ashley Phosphate between Trolley and where Wescott Plantation is now.

Now, Wescott is so large that they have their own team in the City Swim League, and Coosaw Creek has one of the best two or three teams in the area (behind Snee Farm, Parkshore).

.

That's like the Savannah HWY. Once you left Avondale, the next traffic light was at Dupont Crossing.

[Geechie North]

Here's a way-back:

Remember when WCBD was WUSN?

Remember those yahoos?

TV Guide even ran an article about their on-air hijinx.

[Pluffmud Henry]

I remember the line-up for the Empire Strikes Back at a theater on Rivers at Aviation. That theater is long gone. But I also remember seeing Mother's Finest at Derriares.

The Flying Dutchman was a hellhole of drunks and idiots, but also a good place to see live talent. I was under 21 (was I ever under 21?!) but able to get in because I worked at a local guitar shop and the bands kept putting me on the no-cover guestlist. Management would let me in but if I ever drank, I was 86'd. This was back in 86!!! I was a kid at St. Andrews High School, but I had longer hair than boys were wearing back then and looked like a 20-something. I was a "victim" of statutory rape many times over, but when the under -18 is a guy, the standard is different. I got a lot of contact info for band management, and when I graduated, one of those agencies found me a bass gig in Indiana and my airfare was covered by the band and agent.

We opened for Foghat once in Illinois.

After Hugo, I remember that we never again saw spires atop the Catholic Church on Hwy 17.

Older memories include the Sunloft and Son of Sunloft where Gene's Haufbrau is, Gerald's RECAPS!!! and when you went to see Santa Clause in St. Andrew's Center. You walked down this service corridor that was otherwise closed to the public and Santa was on a throne. I asked for G.I. Joes and Rock'em Sock'em Robots.

I remember the candy you could get at Sears on Calhoun Street. Now King Street has a Saks 5th and Anne Taylor and every other generic any-town-USA store you can think of.

Everything in Charleston is everywhere else you go. I've lived in Denver and Austin and now that I'm back home, I see national business that weren't here when I left. It's like I brought all that generic horsetihs back with me.

[Geechie North]

Henry,

Sounds like you and I are from the same geological strata. What most people do not know is that Charleston of the present is as much like the Charleston of the 1970's as is the Indianapolis of the present (except, no way you could mistake the White River for the Atlantic.) As Jimmy Buffett sang about the joint, and Lowcountry in general, "How can ya tell how it used to be when there's nothin' left to see?"

[SCBeaches]

Remember Bushy's down at Folly Beach on the right side? Food wasn't that great but the atmosphere was...very nautical/beachy and we always knew most everyone in there. Good times!

[ZUMAN]

How about Angers Wharf (I think that's the correct name) on Folly Rd, JI.? Was open in the early 70s. I remember it as a pretty good seafood place. I believe it burned down late 70s.

[fqtravlr]

North Charleston was called the North Area, and it was a great place to grow up. All the best and fastest cars would meet at Piggy Park Drive-In by Gaslight Square to wave pink slips and challenge to race on the "Dual Lane". Right down the road, by The North 52 Drive In Theater was Momma Kates. Best sandwiches in town.
Gaslight Square was home to the Rocky Horror Picture Show, every weekend at Midnight, and it was always packed. If you got busted for drinking, they would call your Dad, and you'd know not to do it again!
Pinehaven Cinema was brand new, and we didn't have to go downtown to see a movie anymore.
Northwoods Mall was still "wetlands" and the area between I-26 and Montague was considered unbuildable land and would always be a wetlands buffer to the airport. (Tanger and the Wallyworld dynasty resides there now).
Nobody went to Mt Pleasant. It was ALL THE WAY over there.
Dorchester Road was two lanes from Montague Ave to the double intersection of Trolley Rd and Ladson Rd. Oakbrook got it's name from the massive oaks surrounding this intersection, but most of them were removed when these two roads where redirected to make two intersections.
Cross County Road was a dirt trail where everyone rode dirtbikes.
There was a flashing yellow light where Hwy 41 intersected Hwy 17, and why not? Nobody ever went past Boone Hall unless you were heading to Myrtle Beach.
Used to watch my Dad walk up those roll away steps to get on his plane at the old airport terminal, at the end of the appropriately named Aviation Avenue, then we would drive down the road beside the runway to watch his plane takeoff.
Carnes Crossroads was way out past Goose Creek, marked by that slowly flashing yellow light. Highway 52 was just two lanes from Ashley Phosphate all the way to Kingstree. Holly Hill was just an old Plantation before Alumax came along, and Crowfield was a crazy notion some developer had. Goose Creek was on the other side of the railroad tracks, after all. The Oaks County Club was a beautiful place for weddings and it seemed like everybody that lived in Goose Creek had a Dad in the Navy.
Summerville stopped at the intersection of Hwy 78 and 17A, and then it was just woods on that 2 lane road out to the interstate.
The Baptist College was the only thing at the intersection of Hwy 78 and the interstate. Nothing but pine trees around it. I thought I was so far from home when I went there for baseball camp.
If you lived in Charleston, chances are you had more than one relative that worked at Westvaco or the Shipyard. Either place guaranteed you a job until retirement. They were the most sought-after jobs because of the stability.
St Francis was on Rutledge Avenue and Roper was on Calhoun. The Medical College was on Rutledge. County Hospital was where the indigent recieved medical care, and the old Charleston Museum was on the corner of Rutledge and Calhoun.
The Citadel played baseball in College Park, across from Jimmy Dengates. The Keg was usually where AWOL cadets could be found on a weeknight.
Ric's cafe was in the Old Charleston Motel, and hosted nickel draft nights, but that is part of the marina now. First bar I ever went in was Dino's, on the Crosstown where Hardee's now sits. There were no fast food joints downtown back then.
There was no Ripley Light Marina and The Caballero was the best supper club West Ashley, with fine dining and ballroom dancing. Somebody was always riding or stealing the Coburg Cow, and all the major car dealerships were not on "The Automile" of Savannah Highway, but were still on Morrison Drive downtown. The round Holiday Inn was brand new and sure looked wierd perched between the two bridges.
Bee's Ferry Rd was a short cut from Hwy 61 to Hwy 17, and a good isolated place to do some dragracing if you found yourself West Ashley with an urge to mess with the Middleton boys.
You could buy groceries from Johnny Doscher or Rodenberg's, or one of the many other local stores.
If your lawnmower needed fixing, you went downtown to CW Westendorff's because they had parts for darn near everything. They were on St Phillip and Warren, right up the street from Condon's department store. We made one trip to Condon's every year to buy school clothes, if I were so lucky, we would go to the American Theater on King Street to see a movie.

And of course, the television staples of Saturday morning. The Jobman Caravan and Happy Raine!

[SCBeaches]

Great list, fqtravlr!!

[Luvsdabeach]

Yeah fqtravlr pretty much summed everything up. lol

ZUMAN, I remember Adger's Wharf. If I remember correctly the owner(?), an older gentleman, would walk the ladies to their table arm-in-arm while the males followed behind. They had the best crab dip!!

[Geechie North]

Cavallaro was always my wife and my's favorite romantic restaurant.

Does anyone know if the Coburg Cow is still there?
Funny thing about that damn plastic piece of kitsch, in the face of their way of life being dismanteled around them, the locals hung onto that single artifact as a symbol they would not allow to be demolished.