Hatfield Drive-In Theater, Hatfield Lake & Roller Rink 2373 Bee Line Hwy, Athens, AL. The exact location of the rink is now known. Can you spot the concrete area east of the lake? If you do, that was where the rink was. The building was torn down due to disrepairs. it was so bad that they had to tear it down. But you can see the Hatfield Lake (actually a swimming pool) on the right side of the photo, north of Hatfield Lake Road. You can see the old Drive-in theater on the left. Even you can see the arches imprint still there. You can see the arches on the ground still. That is the old theater.
New homes were being built on south of the road. Currently that land is being redeveloped into a park-like setting according to a skate fan. Source: Google.
New homes were being built on south of the road. Currently that land is being redeveloped into a park-like setting according to a skate fan. Source: Google.
Hatfield Drive-In Theater, Hatfield Lake & Roller Rink 2373 Bee Line Hwy, Athens, AL. Noticed the "lake" which is actually a large swimming pool. The diving boards are still shown in this 2020 photograph! It was closed about 40 years prior to this photo. Can you see the concrete on the ground east of the lake in above? Then you found the former roller rink. The man-made lake has been since cleaned up between 2015 and 2020. Source: Google.
Hatfield Drive-In Theater, Hatfield Lake & Roller Rink 2373 Bee Line Hwy, Athens, AL. Close up of the old theater drive-in as it was taken in 2012. You could see the pavement driveway onto the field. And the projector house in middle still sporting the foundation. But... Next photo of same map showed it has faded quickly in 8 years. Google Map had much poorer quality in the 2020 photo! Wow. Not improving! Source: Google.
Hatfield Drive-In Theater, Hatfield Lake & Roller Rink 2373 Bee Line Hwy, Athens, AL. Can you see the drive in's "scars"? Source: Google.
Hatfield Drive-In Theater, Hatfield Lake & Roller Rink 2373 Bee Line Hwy, Athens, AL. The rink was to the right side of the lake (right side of photograph). Source: Randell Hamilton.
Hatfield Drive-In Theater, Hatfield Lake & Roller Rink 2373 Bee Line Hwy, Athens, AL. Sorry for the decolorization of the photos. I will fix them when I can. (bit hard to unwrinkled them too). Source: Randell Hamilton.
Hatfield Drive-In Theater, Hatfield Lake & Roller Rink 2373 Bee Line Hwy, Athens, AL. View of the rink. Nice couple up front close to the photographer. Kind of like having selfies back the day. I kind of figure they wanted that photo done as a "selfie" way back in 1950s (appeared to be). Source: Randell Hamilton.
Nice picture, couple! You both looked great!
Nice picture, couple! You both looked great!
Hatfield Drive-In Theater, Hatfield Lake & Roller Rink 2373 Bee Line Hwy, Athens, AL. Wow, those two.. wooo! No, I am not talking about those cars. I am talking about the ladies in the photograph! Oh man! Where is Doc Brown and his DeLorean? Dang, I wish I had a couple skate with the one on... the left. Oh well. Hahaa. OK, about the rink.. whew.. It was very homely and simple design that it did look like it was built based on houses back the day with stick built and wood sidings. Big windows up front. Kind of like what you see everywhere for any commercial places-- stores, C-stores, A-stores, D-stores, gas stations, drive-ins restaurants, and more. Sorry for my comic silliness. Looked like taken in late 1940s or early 1950s. This means.. wow. Oh the time machine.... Source: Randell Hamilton.
Hatfield Drive-In Theater, Hatfield Lake & Roller Rink 2373 Bee Line Hwy, Athens, AL
Hatfield Lake & Roller Rink was a rink on Bee Line Highway, Athens, AL That is not a real name. That is a name I got off of someone on Flickr. Someone by the name of "Teacupsmom" on Donald Baxter's page on Flickr mentioned that her parents owned this lake and rink. Only was the photograph of the lakeside where you could go for a swim. The photo is very depressing. You will see for yourself here. There are no photos because all of the building including the skating rink were demolished.
It also had dance hall (perhaps shared with roller rink), an arcade, and the big one--the Hatfield Drive-In Theater. It was part of an entertainment complex at that area back the day with popular 20th century activities I listed.
The last time for the rink perhaps was in 1984 but the drive-in closed in 1980. Many parts of the entertainment complex in that area fell victim and closed for good here and there. It was beyond repairs so the current owners, the Lindsay Family. Mr. Bob Lindsay purchased the property some 10-12 years ago (2008 to 2010). The rink was on east side of the man made “Lake” where only the concrete entrance pad is visible today. Mr. Lindsay had them torn down due to the disrepair of the buildings. The lake has been cleaned up within the last 5 years and looks more like a park area now. The diving board area remain as does the platform. It is private property and visits allowed by owner permission only. Mr. Randy Hamilton, son in law to Mr. And Mrs. Lindsay maintains the property now along with his wife regina Lindsay Hamilton. The spring still feeds the Lake and it is truly a concrete lake now with fish living in it. It’s a beautiful property at the end of Hatfield lake Road and the family plans to maintain the Lake for historical purposes for all that visited the Lake in it’s day.
Now completely gone. The only thing remains are the man made Hatfield Lake. No public access UNLESS WITH PERMISSION since it is PRIVATE property. And the remaining of the Drive-In Theater ghostly sits on top view as you can see the photos taken by Google Map in 2012 and most recent in 2020.
Thank you to Randy Hamilton who informed me corrections and history. AND photos on January 14, 2021.
The history of this place began as this-- The Hatfield Lake was named for Jim Hatfield hence the name. Jim in the 1930s dug the swimming pool which at one time billed as “the largest concrete swimming pool in North Alabama, fed by pure spring water” – with the assistance of a mule and a man named James Thomas Strain. No wonder the pool still exist. It was a swimming pool, not a lake. Then Jim Hatfield who bought the land in year 1930, besides building the pool, he built picnic areas and a campground for tent dwellers and travel trailers of yesteryear. (from the book “Treasures of Athens and Limestone County by Betty L. Taylor.)
When William Myers bought the property in 1936 from Jim Hatfield, he added the skating rink that was the site of many a matchmaking for couples who met at the rink while skating. Then later, Fred Rainey also owned Hatfield Lake before selling it to Hosea Bartlett in 1962. Bartlett ran the lake for 10 years. Then this couple from 1973 to 1984. Many ownerships on this property! Even before Jim Hatfield built the entertainment complex on the property, many owners before him as it was after him. I do not know why they kept buying and selling like hot cakes. About six to ten yeas each!
All of the old buildings were demolished. This was truly entertainment area for anyone to go to choose one to enjoy for an evening. Or to swim during the day.
UPDATE! -- 10 February 2022.
Wow, I received a very lengthy email from a D.W. who wrote this email about this rink at Hatfield Lake. This is what he has to say. This profile is one of most detailed. Here is what he has to say--
I really enjoyed your article regarding Hatfield Lake and Roller Rink in Athens, AL.
I worked at Hatfield Lake while I was in my teens from 1978 through 1981 and for a bit.
In 1983 when Dalphus and Peggy Kelley owned the place. It was a great place for everyone to meet up and you could about see everyone in the county working there. As was touched on in the article, it was a place were many marriages began and ended. It was sad to see it closed.
I know when the Kelley’s owned the place it was a challenge to keep up with sanitation codes in the pool because it was not a filtrated system. We manually applied chlorination and we vacuumed the pool on the deep end and a roped off area during low use periods to remove silt and other contaminants. That was once a week, using a gas pump mounted a deck that sat on a tractor tire inner tube. But we always kept it pristine and managed to keep our health permits. The pool was still spring fed and on hot days you could get next to the inlet to the pool and stay a few degrees cooler than the rest of the pool. The water from the spring was ice cold. Many happy memories from those times of my youth.
I noticed in your article that a Mr. Randy Hamilton was responsible for the land with the pool now and was wondering if you could possibly put me in contact with him. I would like to gain permission to access the property and possibly do some metal detecting. It would be interesting to see what you could find in that area, for a lot of history was made there over the years. (Oh that sounds like fun to do metal detecting and you should also try magnet fishing which I do have that 1200 pounds rating magnet myself and has had found items).
Thanks for your help in the matter and the article!
The Interior.
N/A
The Exterior.
It was a Gable roof wood built skating rink. Smallish I have to say from viewing old photos Randel send me. It looked like white color paint. Hard to tell thanks to the photographs that are in Black and White. Wood siding. Likely wood floor. Demolished.
The Stats:
Rink Size: N/A. Floor: N/A. Floor Layout: N/A.
Building Size: N/A. Built: c.1936. Demolished: Demolished. Now much land and new developments of homes.
Type of Building: Wood built.
Roof: Gable.
Acres: 120 Acres.
Operated: c. 1936 to 1984.
Reason for Closure: N/A. But the Drive-in, declining due to competition from air-conditioning move theaters and the early rise of videotapes VHS and DVDs in 1980s and beyond.
Wanted: Information regarding exact dates of open and closing and why closed?
Anyone has more pictures and/or information please let me know at [email protected]. Thank you.
Sources:
Flickr
The Valley Star - (Some information in this article came from the book “Treasures of Athens and Limestone County by Betty L. Taylor.),
AL.com
Cinemas Treasure
Email - Randy Hamilton (14 January 2021).
Worth to visit:
You can but you need to reach out Randy Hamilton for permission to access the property. It is becoming a development so you might not have much time left to see it. Dead-Rinks and Mark Falso are not responsible for your physical and legal injuries you may have caused. Please always obey laws and regulations and property owner's signs. Some states allow purple paint on fence which means they even have guns on their property and have rights to shoot you. Please DO NOT attempt to enter property without permission! Thank you for understanding.
Date of Issue: 2020.
Updated: 14 January 2021.
Updated: 10 February 2022. (Might be updated again on 06 March 2023?) Haha.
For Office Only: 8.
© Copyrighted by Dead-Rinks. All Rights Reserved.
It also had dance hall (perhaps shared with roller rink), an arcade, and the big one--the Hatfield Drive-In Theater. It was part of an entertainment complex at that area back the day with popular 20th century activities I listed.
The last time for the rink perhaps was in 1984 but the drive-in closed in 1980. Many parts of the entertainment complex in that area fell victim and closed for good here and there. It was beyond repairs so the current owners, the Lindsay Family. Mr. Bob Lindsay purchased the property some 10-12 years ago (2008 to 2010). The rink was on east side of the man made “Lake” where only the concrete entrance pad is visible today. Mr. Lindsay had them torn down due to the disrepair of the buildings. The lake has been cleaned up within the last 5 years and looks more like a park area now. The diving board area remain as does the platform. It is private property and visits allowed by owner permission only. Mr. Randy Hamilton, son in law to Mr. And Mrs. Lindsay maintains the property now along with his wife regina Lindsay Hamilton. The spring still feeds the Lake and it is truly a concrete lake now with fish living in it. It’s a beautiful property at the end of Hatfield lake Road and the family plans to maintain the Lake for historical purposes for all that visited the Lake in it’s day.
Now completely gone. The only thing remains are the man made Hatfield Lake. No public access UNLESS WITH PERMISSION since it is PRIVATE property. And the remaining of the Drive-In Theater ghostly sits on top view as you can see the photos taken by Google Map in 2012 and most recent in 2020.
Thank you to Randy Hamilton who informed me corrections and history. AND photos on January 14, 2021.
The history of this place began as this-- The Hatfield Lake was named for Jim Hatfield hence the name. Jim in the 1930s dug the swimming pool which at one time billed as “the largest concrete swimming pool in North Alabama, fed by pure spring water” – with the assistance of a mule and a man named James Thomas Strain. No wonder the pool still exist. It was a swimming pool, not a lake. Then Jim Hatfield who bought the land in year 1930, besides building the pool, he built picnic areas and a campground for tent dwellers and travel trailers of yesteryear. (from the book “Treasures of Athens and Limestone County by Betty L. Taylor.)
When William Myers bought the property in 1936 from Jim Hatfield, he added the skating rink that was the site of many a matchmaking for couples who met at the rink while skating. Then later, Fred Rainey also owned Hatfield Lake before selling it to Hosea Bartlett in 1962. Bartlett ran the lake for 10 years. Then this couple from 1973 to 1984. Many ownerships on this property! Even before Jim Hatfield built the entertainment complex on the property, many owners before him as it was after him. I do not know why they kept buying and selling like hot cakes. About six to ten yeas each!
All of the old buildings were demolished. This was truly entertainment area for anyone to go to choose one to enjoy for an evening. Or to swim during the day.
UPDATE! -- 10 February 2022.
Wow, I received a very lengthy email from a D.W. who wrote this email about this rink at Hatfield Lake. This is what he has to say. This profile is one of most detailed. Here is what he has to say--
I really enjoyed your article regarding Hatfield Lake and Roller Rink in Athens, AL.
I worked at Hatfield Lake while I was in my teens from 1978 through 1981 and for a bit.
In 1983 when Dalphus and Peggy Kelley owned the place. It was a great place for everyone to meet up and you could about see everyone in the county working there. As was touched on in the article, it was a place were many marriages began and ended. It was sad to see it closed.
I know when the Kelley’s owned the place it was a challenge to keep up with sanitation codes in the pool because it was not a filtrated system. We manually applied chlorination and we vacuumed the pool on the deep end and a roped off area during low use periods to remove silt and other contaminants. That was once a week, using a gas pump mounted a deck that sat on a tractor tire inner tube. But we always kept it pristine and managed to keep our health permits. The pool was still spring fed and on hot days you could get next to the inlet to the pool and stay a few degrees cooler than the rest of the pool. The water from the spring was ice cold. Many happy memories from those times of my youth.
I noticed in your article that a Mr. Randy Hamilton was responsible for the land with the pool now and was wondering if you could possibly put me in contact with him. I would like to gain permission to access the property and possibly do some metal detecting. It would be interesting to see what you could find in that area, for a lot of history was made there over the years. (Oh that sounds like fun to do metal detecting and you should also try magnet fishing which I do have that 1200 pounds rating magnet myself and has had found items).
Thanks for your help in the matter and the article!
The Interior.
N/A
The Exterior.
It was a Gable roof wood built skating rink. Smallish I have to say from viewing old photos Randel send me. It looked like white color paint. Hard to tell thanks to the photographs that are in Black and White. Wood siding. Likely wood floor. Demolished.
The Stats:
Rink Size: N/A. Floor: N/A. Floor Layout: N/A.
Building Size: N/A. Built: c.1936. Demolished: Demolished. Now much land and new developments of homes.
Type of Building: Wood built.
Roof: Gable.
Acres: 120 Acres.
Operated: c. 1936 to 1984.
Reason for Closure: N/A. But the Drive-in, declining due to competition from air-conditioning move theaters and the early rise of videotapes VHS and DVDs in 1980s and beyond.
Wanted: Information regarding exact dates of open and closing and why closed?
Anyone has more pictures and/or information please let me know at [email protected]. Thank you.
Sources:
Flickr
The Valley Star - (Some information in this article came from the book “Treasures of Athens and Limestone County by Betty L. Taylor.),
AL.com
Cinemas Treasure
Email - Randy Hamilton (14 January 2021).
Worth to visit:
You can but you need to reach out Randy Hamilton for permission to access the property. It is becoming a development so you might not have much time left to see it. Dead-Rinks and Mark Falso are not responsible for your physical and legal injuries you may have caused. Please always obey laws and regulations and property owner's signs. Some states allow purple paint on fence which means they even have guns on their property and have rights to shoot you. Please DO NOT attempt to enter property without permission! Thank you for understanding.
Date of Issue: 2020.
Updated: 14 January 2021.
Updated: 10 February 2022. (Might be updated again on 06 March 2023?) Haha.
For Office Only: 8.
© Copyrighted by Dead-Rinks. All Rights Reserved.