Tag Archives: 1930s

West Shore Diner- Lemoyne, PA

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The West Shore Diner was built in the 1930s by the Patterson Vehicle Company of Patterson, New Jersey. It may be the only surviving Silk City diner with this narrow floor plan. It appears it may have originally been all stools, but that at some point, the back wall was bumped out. This moved the backbar out the back a bit, allowing the counter to be moved further back, freeing up space for some deuce booths on the outside wall. The ceiling is similar to other silk city diners, but as it is so much narrower, it is steeper on the sides, and does not have the elegant curve of later models. Dark woodwork, tile and formica make up most of the interior, while the exterior has been repainted time and time again. The West Shore shows its 70+ years of age, but is a unique example of early New Jersey diner manufacture. his is my go-to diner in the Harrisburg area, and one of the best I’ve been to. It is one of the friendliest around. The food is excellent, and comes in enormous portions at bargain prices. They have great t-shirts, too, which is always a plus. You can’t go wrong with a stop at the West Shore.
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A more recent, more drab paint scheme.
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Frazer Diner- Frazer, PA

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I was sent these pictures by my old man, who visited on Friday.

The Frazer diner is a 1935 O’Mahony, originally located in and named the Paoli diner. (Paoli is also the home of the Philadelphia curling club, where I’ve spent a lot of time). It was moved in 1957 to its current location, just down the road, in Frazer. It was renovated/restored in 2002.
A photo of it before the work was done, showing the old awnings, can be found at:
http://www.agilitynut.com/p/frazer.jpg
A photo of the old neon sign can be found at: The American Roadside
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The Charcoal Pit- original location – North Wilmington

The Charcoal Pit Tradition dates back to September 1956 when it first opened its doors. The “Pit” – referred to by loyal customers, became such an instant success that only after three months from the grand opening, it was decided to build more room for its long line of hungry customers. The “Pit” went from a small four table and a counter burger joint to a 115 customer-seating establishment.

http://charcoalpit.net/

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Fracher’s Diner / Main Street Station – Plymouth, NH

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Frachers Diner – 2007
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My Art

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I paint what I like.

Harold’s Furniture, Lebanon, PA.
Notice that the neon of the sign reads, “Furniture”, while the enamel reads Harolds. Photographed this one on a Lebanon diner trip. Unfortunately, most of the diners from that trip have now either been moved or are closed.

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Abandoned Silk Mill, Columbia, PA.
Saw this while driving down the highway on the way to Lancaster. Pulled off at the exit and took some quick snaps in the early morning mist. The roof’s long since caved in, and the entire thing’s fenced off. That’s probably a good idea, it looks about ready to fall down, and I’m sure there are enough people like me out there who are just curious and stupid enough to go in.
This is a fairly massive painting, done on a big piece of plywood. I finished in less than a week, working day and night at the Maryland Summer Center for the Arts at Salisbury University, to get it ready for a show.

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Abandoned Travel Trailer, Oatman, AZ
This is just outside tourist trap central, Oatman, Arizona, famous for its wild donkeys. The trailer’s an old model, filled with light wood and broken bottles.

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Music Store, Kingman, AZ
Kingman Arizona was the first stop of our Arizona trip. We stayed at a restored hotel across from the railroad tracks, owned by a French gentleman. The town’s a hotbed of neon.

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Nash, Cool Springs, AZ
A rusty old nash sitting outside the Cool Springs gas station, on the road from Kingman to Oatman, one of the most beautiful and winding stretches of road you’ll ever have the pleasure to drive.

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Gas pump detail (work in progress) Cool Springs, AZ
A detail from a large painting of a mobilgas pump at the Cool Springs Gas Station.

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Tiki
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Owl Diner – Lowell, MA
The most diner-enthusiast accommodating establishment I’ve visited. Homefries to die for. A great worcester semi-streamliner.
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Palace Diner – Maine
Hit the palace while it was closed, but took pictures, and did the drawing. The owner saw this drawing posted on Roadside, and got in touch with me about using it on their menu. Gave to go ahead, and never heard back after that.
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Diner – Winslow, AZ
Across the street from LaPosada. Closed.
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Diner – Winslow, AZ
It’s still for sale, all these years later.
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Motel- Holbrook, AZ – Painting won 2nd place at a Johns Hopkins art competition.
American Owned. Broken windows.
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Celebrating my win.
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Bridge Diner- Havre De Grace, Maryland

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Here’s another one of the Maryland Diners. It’s changed a bit since it was built.  Take a look at the postcard and take a look at what it looks like now.

Here’s how it looked when it was new, probably late 1930s. The tag is gone, it was probably removed or covered over when renovations were done in the 1950s. It was called the New bridge diner then. I like the awnings. A nice touch of class.
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Here is is now. The original lettering reading, “Bridge Diner” is still present, though not visible in this shot because of the cars. There are holes drilled in the enamel on the left hand side, where the lettering reading “new” was originally bolted on. As you can see, the windows were redone at some point, removing the top part. A vestibule and roof were added as well, completely changing the look of the place
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Inside the old Silk City
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A shot showing the old mural painted on the ceiling. There is one on both end, both with similar scenes. This also shows the ’50s renovation, with boomerang formica replacing the dark wood window surrounds, a stainless bump out for lighting fixtures, and the end door delete.
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The bridge diner is located at 801 Pulaski Hwy, Havre De Grace, MD