This ad from a 1965 Vacationland magazine served as a heads-up to those who travelled North or South on the 99 in route to Walt's little park in Anaheim:
Next door, the Tulare Inn soldiers on as a forlorn ambassador of a time that was...
Where was once a neatly kept lawn, only dried chaff remains on exhibit:
A refreshing pool now hosts only echoes from the past...
"The Tulare dust, in a farm boy's nose...wondering where the freight train goes.
I can see Mom and Dad with shoulders low, both of them pickin' on a double row.
They do it for a livin', because they must...that's life like it is in the Tulare Dust..."
---Merle Haggard---
8 comments:
haha Nice Merle Haggard quote. Yeah, being from Bakersfield and whatnot I know all about the dust.
Hey. Just wanted to drop you a quick note to say what a nifty blog you've got here. The juxtaposition of the new photos alongside the old ones is extremely fascinating. I do a similar thing over at the Atlanta Time Machine but the shots cover pretty much everything all over town. Anyhow, this is a great blog and I look forward to return visits.
Greg
http://atlantatimemachine.com/
Thanks Greg---
I'm checking out your Atalnata site right now---Fantastic stuff---Good to know that there are other 'then-and-now' folks out there!
Thanks again for leaving a comment. I hope to post more frequently in the future so check back when you can...
Take care---
A friend pointed this entry out to me. Thanks for posting it. My dad owned Perry's and after he sold it, it changed hands and eventually faded away. Dad died a few years ago and it's sad to see this part of his legacy disappear. It reminds me of Ecclesiastes - a time for everything under heaven. Appreciate the way you handled this. Lyn
thanks for sharing the photos and the memories. this was dad's 3rd restaurant in tulare. we moved here in 1947 and dad had perry's drive in just north of tulare city limits on north j street (hiway 99 at that time). when the hiway went around tulare, dad built perry's sky ranch cafe at ave 200 and freeway 99 in 1954 and in 1958 added the perry's tulare inn coffee shop. we eventually had 5 restaurants in all (3 in tulare and 1 in bakersfield and 1 in fresno). i was in partnership with my day from 1965 to 1972 in the restaurants and from 1972 to 1989 in a farming operation east of tulare. ron perry
Dear Ron and Lyn,
So glad that you found this post and left your comments. I’ve always hoped that the folks involved with the various businesses I profile on my blog would stop in, but it’s rare to actually make that connection.
Sorry to hear about your Dad…
And the last time I passed by the Perry’s Tulare Inn location (in November) I noticed that it had been bulldozed…Sad.
Lyn, I have to ask if you may be the Lyn of ‘Ave 200 Lyn’s Café’ located across the highway from the former Sky Ranch Café? During our annual trips to Disneyland, my family and I always stop at the Chevron station located nearby, and we also visit the B-17 and F-4 Phantom located at the airport. Love the old sign on that cafe.
Your reference to Ecclesiastes is appropriate; much of what I write about is of things that once existed under the sun and are now no more. I’m content to shine a light back in time on these places that used to serve our community and where friendship and fellowship (not to mention breakfast!), were once offered. Places like Perry’s added to the civility of our society and are missed whether or not people stand back and take note.
I have several postcards from the Sky Ranch Café and Motel and was planning another post covering the whole Ave 200 vicinity. As I mentioned, we’ve been pausing there each year since 1993, and I have a wealth of pictures to post. By the way, do you know if that B-17 used to be in a different but nearby location? I remember stopping as a kid and I would swear that it was in a different setting.
Well, I hope you see this reply and if you’d like, please drop me a line at cdubya2000@yahoo.com or give me a call at 209-524-1458. I’d love to hear any old stories and maybe gather some more history on Perry’s so that I can add it to my follow up post.
Take care and thanks for letting us all know a bit more about what will always be "The Best Cup of Coffee on 99"…
Does anyone know if this is the same place that J.E. Stout bought from Perry?
Don't know if anyone will see this but I was born and raised in Tulare and have started a facebook page called "You might be from Tulare if you remember this" Walterworld and Lyn and anyone else who has an interest in Tulare is welcomed. Here is the url
http://www.facebook.com/#!/group.php?gid=105469896155972
Lyn your post about Perry's really intrigued me. We've got a few threads going about Perry's and I certainly didn't realize there were multiple locations. Take care
Charles Simpson
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