This O’Mahony was replaced by the current massive 1950s stainless O’Mahony which currently stands in Aberdeen, Maryland. It, in turn, replaced an older diner, the Ideal Diner.
The New Ideal Diner
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Tag Archives: matchbook
Double T Diner Matchbook
Here’s another matchbook cover I just got.
The Pulaski Highway Double T Diner, before it was unfortunately remodeled into the current Happy Day Diner.
Before and after photos here.
The Spot Diner – Baltimore, Maryland
The Spot Diner was located at 220 N. Franklintown Road, Baltimore, MD, an industrial neighborhood just off Rt. 40.
While the matchbook graphic obviously exaggerates the diner’s size, it does appear to be a representation of the diner itself, and not just a stock image. It looks like the diner was sold in 1954 and changed its name to the Franklintown Diner. It was sold again in 1962.
The site is now home to Calmi Electric. The windows and proportions are right for a covered diner, as is the foundation and window/door deletes on the other side of the building. But the setup and size don’t look consistent with what’s on the match cover, even taking into account the exaggeration. So at the moment- it’s a big who knows. Further investigation is necessary.
Matchbook from the collection of Spencer Stewart
Laurel Diner
I found another matchbook view of the Laurel Diner, which I believe shows an older diner which the current Comac replaced. If you have any wild guesses as to builder or date of the diner from the matchbook, please throw them out there.
Frustratingly, it’s just a drawing on the matchbook, but it seems too specific to be stock art, and I haven’t seen the design on any other matchbooks, so I’m going to assume it’s at least fairly representative of what was there.
Note the doors at both ends. The rooftop sign advertises it as both a diner and a bar.
Matchbook design is mostly the same, but diner is different and it’s billed as the “New” Laurel diner
Postcards showing the early 1950s Comac which later became part of the Tastee Diner Chain. I wish I could find an actual photograph to confirm the earlier diner.
Mahony Diners
I recently bought this matchbook from the estate of John L. Cronk.
Mahony was a short lived diner company, formed from the remains of O’Mahony.
This matchbook’s interesting in that it advertises not only the Mahony diner company and their Mahony Diner – Motel Center, but also the diner trade journal, Fountain Luncheonette and diner magazine of Rahway, NJ. The inside of the matchbook discusses the virtues of matchbooks as a form of diner advertising.
My other Mahony ephemera.
A Mahony Diner tag, made for a diner that was never built.
Unfortunately, other than its short lifespan and its relation to O’Mahony, I can’t seem to find all that much on the company. I’d love to know more.
Diner Hunter 