99W Drive-in Theatre

National Register Description

The following text is courtesy of the National Register of Historic Places, a program of the National Parks Service. Minor transcription errors or changes in formatting may have occurred; please see the Nomination Form for official text. Some information may have become outdated since the property was nominated for the Register.

The 99W Drive-In Theatre in Newberg, Oregon, which opened July 31, 1953, is eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places under Criterion A, ENTERTAINMENT/RECREATION, as a drive-in movie theater reflecting family entertainment trends in the post-World War II era. It also is eligible under Criterion C, ARCHITECTURE, as a rare, remaining, intact example of a drive-in theater. It is one of three remaining driveins in Oregon, and the only one extant in Yamhill County. This specific drive-in theater strongly represents the drive-in phenomenon from its rise to its decline, which occurred commensurate with the rise of home entertainment systems. It has been in continual operation from the time it opened, adapting to new entertainment trends over the years. As an important example of mid-century entertainment and car culture, the 99W Drive-In Theatre is a property that reflects the values of its time and continues to function as originally designed. It retains all the components of the property type, expressed in a Modern design with modest Googie-style elements, also a product of the times.