Ten More Former Michigan Drive-In Theatres: Clayton to St Johns

Here we go with another batch of ten former Michigan drive-in theaters that have gone the way of parking lots, malls, and overgrowth.

The ten this time can be found (or at least, once upon a time they were) in Clayton, Devil's Lake, Douglas, Ecorse, Flint, Harper Woods, Ishpeming, Kalamazoo, Monroe, and St. Johns.

What I noticed about these drive-ins is that many lasted for about thirty years, opening in the 1950s and closing in the 1980s. There are a couple of exceptions: the Douglas Drive-In in Douglas that opened and closed the same year: 1946.

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The Diamond T Ranch Drive-In in Clayton opened and closed in 1948 and had an amazing capacity of 1,927.

When the novelty of going to drive-in movies died down during the 1970s, the theater owners did their best to drum up extra business by showing triple features, playgrounds for the kids...and when all else failed, started showing X-rated films.

Many of these old drive-ins are even hard to see by satellite photos. Some of these became backyards, junk yards, shopping centers, a sports center, and church.

Take a look at the gallery below showing these ten former Michigan drive-in theater locations, along with a few original old movie ads...