The old Hostess/Wonder Bread store on Bonney Road was vacated many years ago (I think). It then looked like it was being used as overflow parking for the nearby car dealership. But I guess it's finally being re-developed.

There aren't many good reasons to go to Bonney Road these days, but that Hostess outlet used to be the spot for your bulk Twinkie needs.

contact- nat.rain@gmail.com

 

extinction of Lynnhaven East..

Looks like the old Lynnhaven East strip mall is being remodeled (or torn down). It lost its Toys R Us anchor a while ago. Toys R Us went up in the late '8os, along with a couple other tenants.

This is the strip's listing in the 1992 phone directory. They weren't kidding when they described the non-consecutive suite addresses as 'Irregular'. Toys R Us and Schlotzsky's had different physical but identical (mailing) addresses?

The shell of Toys R Us. A lot of memories from this place. And it was a bold move opening there, because if I remember right.. Children's Palace was still operating just across the street when they opened, and Toy Castle was still in business just another couple blocks away. Rest in peace.

contact- nat.rain@gmail.com

 

Remembering a local men's suit shop, Alexander Beegle. There was one near the Oceanfront, and a location inside Military Circle. This is a newspaper ad from December 1979. 

I found an old interview where I pulled this screen cap, of Beegle's Military Circle facade.

contact- nat.rain@gmail.com

 

Great Neck's Chesapeake Indians

During the early & mid 8os, the Great Neck area of Virginia Beach was excavated for artifacts from a long-gone Chesapeake Indian settlement. In this photo, you can see postholes that had been left behind for centuries. There were once part of their dwellings. This site was on Thomas Bishop Lane, photo is from the mid 8os.

Nearby postholes..

When you enter the neighborhood today, there's this historical marker giving some backstory on the local Chesapeake.

^ this is some legal and technical info I found from an old government publication on the Great Neck excavation.

Linked comic on the Chesapeake Indians: The Disappearance of the Chesapeake Indians.

contact for feedback, custom art jobs, small talk- nat.rain@gmail.com

 

 

A couple years back, the Birchwood Shopping Center went thru a pretty comprehensive remodel. But they left a remaining segment of its original facade. My best theory: since this wall doesn't face Virginia Beach Blvd, they didn't want to invest in re-doing it. And I appreciate it. It's a remnant of its old '7os form. (This is the back wall facing Lampl, where Revco used to be.)

The whole complex used to have these ridged walls, with the '7os ball lights. It reminds me of its 8os Outlet Mall days.

contact: nat.rain@gmail.com

 

Interesting 1982 print ad I rediscovered recently... Pascal's Isle of Capri, formerly at 313 Laskin Road. I only found one online reference to Pascal's, a 1993 Daily Press article, recalling Pascal's late '70s glory days. I mean, their operating hours were 9 at night 'til 2 in the morning. That's my kinda' club, and I appreciate their hand-crafted logo.

contact- nat.rain@gmail.com

Found this old 1959 directory ad for Maestas Funeral Home recently.. once located on 18th & Baltic. And I realized 65 years later, this building still stands. Had some square footage added, but still there, now housing a funeral home with a different business name..

contact- nat.rain@gmail.com