Community Corner

Cruisegoers Get Nostalgic at Historic Woodward Pit Stops

Metro Detroiters relive an era gone by in photos taken with murals depicting three historic diners on Woodward Avenue.

If there's one thing Jim Dyar remembers about Woodward in the 1950s and '60s, it's the popular hangout spots for all cruisers.

Dyar, driving a 1969 Oldsmobile 442, was one of many cruisers at the Art Van pit stop on Woodward Avenue getting his photo taken in front of a Ted's Drive-In backdrop. 

The legendary Ted's Drive-In was a restaurant at the corner of Woodward and Square Lake Road in Bloomfield Hills during the 1960s.

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"We used to come up (to Ted's) and eat," said Dyar, who now lives in Troy. "Then we'd drag race down Woodward."

The photo shoot is an event sponsored by Chevrolet with pit stops set up at , 32310 Woodward Ave., , 30900 Woodward Ave., and , 27054 Woodward Ave. The backdrop at CVS is the Susie Q, and at Jax Kar Wash, there was a mural of the Totem Pole. Susie Q and Totem Pole were historic drive-in restaurants along Woodward, popular among Metro Detroit cruisers.

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Cruisers in the photo shoots can enter a contest put on by classic music station WOMC-FM, 104.3, to win prizes for the best classic Chevy photos and best overall car photos.

Jim Ferguson talked about memories of "picking up girls" at Ted's Drive-In during the early 1960s. "It was a lot of fun," Ferguson said as he sat in his 1948 Pontiac convertible waiting to have his photo taken.

Marge Forbes of Sterling Heights was assisting with the CVS pit stop and said traffic had been "fairly steady."

Forbes herself was reminiscing about the Woodward hangout spots on the murals. "Racing, seeing friends ... that's what you did," she said.

Dave Lockard of Marine City, MI, was showing off his 1962 Chevy Impala at the CVS pit stop. He said the Susie Q was one of his favorite places to go in the 1970s.

"I loved their fish sandwiches," Lockard said. "It was always crowded."

The photo shoots are free. Look for the Chevy representatives in red shirts flagging down cruisers along Woodward on Saturday.

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