CityView Magazine

FEATURE Looking back on downtown Fayetteville in the 1950s Grand Old City N BY MICHAEL JAENICKE at King Cole's "Unforgettable" was not the No. 1 song of 1951. But, given the luxury of time travel, you'd be hard- pressed to find a more memorable tune that year. Sixty years ago young lovers were whisper- ing his words as they walked through downtown Fayetteville, which at the time was a mecca for large department stores, boutiques, beauty and barber shops, billiard halls, soda shops and fine dining, movie theaters, churches, schools, drug stores, motor vehicle showrooms, grand hotels and working-man motels, with people hanging out on street corners just to feel the pulse of an energized city. Hank Gilbert was there 60 years ago, having just arrived at the bustling Atlantic Coastline Depot as he prepared to have the paperwork completed for his discharge from the U.S. Army. That was the moment the New York native fell in love with the city. So impressed was he with the downtown atmosphere, Gilbert decided to live there for the next two decades. "It had anything and everything you could ask for in abundant supply," said the 93-year-old Gilbert, who now lives in Tampa but can 38 | Anniversary Issue • 2011 relive snapshots of the downtown as if it were an 8mm home movie. "I had purchased a camera in Germany and took five rolls of film that November day in 1951," Gilbert said. "I pull them out now and show them to my children, grandchildren and great- grandchildren, and they are amazed when I tell the stories behind them. For me, it was truly an unforgettable time and place." That month President Harry Truman had officially declared an end to the war with Germany and a new era had started nationwide. Post-World War II Baby Boomers were hard working, progres- sive, and explored the landscape, including downtown Fayette- ville, which served as their commercial center and playground. Their children would save their allowances to attend Satur- day Westerns, such as John Wayne's iconic "Rio Grande" at the Broadway, Haymont, Colony and Carolina theaters. Adults showed up for movies such as MGM's movie version of "Showboat," which starred Smithfield's Ava Gardner, "Alice in Wonderland," "A Streetcar Named Desire" and Humphrey Boga- rt's "African Queen." Fayetteville movie houses were packed and anyone wanting a seat needed to arrive early, according to Gilbert.

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