What’s on the Retro Roadmap Tee Shirt? And other T-Shirt Questions Answered

Some readers were curious as to what images are featured on the Retro Roadmap tee shirt, so here’s a closeup, and a little bit about each one. I picked’em in the hopes I could relay the variety of places that I like to feature on the site, so people don’t just think, “oh, diners.” or “just vintage signs”.

From Left to Right:

The Mill Pond Diner in Wareham MA is a 1950 O’Mahony diner. I visited there on my way down the Cape to see my parents. This diner is so picturesque in the sunshine, I love photographing it. Actually WAY back in the day Roadside Magazine (now Roadside Online) featured one of my photos of this diner, and that was a huge thrill for me. I’ve still got a stack of copies of that issue in the Retro Roadmap archives.)

The Roxy Theatre in Northampton PA  – I stumbled upon this fantastic vintage theatre when roaming around north of Allentown PA, and had to call Retro Roadhusband to tell him I wasn’t coming home ’til later, as I had to stay and see that marquee with the lights turned on. As you can see, I was not disappointed. This great movie house is in my top 10 list of Retro Roadmap finds, and took me 2 posts to contain all my gushing about it.

Harry’s Drive in in Westborough MA is a Route 9 institution, having been there since 1946. It seems like it would be perfect at the beach, instead of on the side of a busy highway in the middle of the state! I’m chagrined to report that I don’t have a proper Retro Roadmap entry for Harry’s, but will remedy that next time I’m up home – unless I have any locals who want an excuse to get some fried foods there?! I cannot resist their sign, as it has 2 of my favorite phrases on it – Drive-In and Fried Clams!

You all probably know about my fondness for Sine’s 5 & 10  store in Quakertown, PA – again, another Retro Roadmap gem that I totally stumbled upon by accident. They’re celebrating their 100 year anniversary this summer, and I wish them many more years of continued success!

The Liquor Store at the Bourne Bridge in Bourne MA is one of the few distinctively Mid Century Modern buildings that I know of in my home state of Massachusetts. The exterior is a landmark for anyone heading “down the Cape” and the interior has some great vintage features as well. And how could I resist adding this photo when someone was kind enough to park their vintage car right out front.

So there you have it!

A couple of notes about the tees, to help you make an informed purchase:

• 100% cotton, Anvil brand tee shirts. Retro Roadhusband’s black tee shirt is a Medium size and he finds it to be comfortable, I got the ladies cut Medium so I would not have to worry about throwing it in the dryer, but I could’ve totally gotten away with a Small.
• After I had washed ours a few times I read that it’s a good idea to turn them inside out before washing ’em, probably to make the design last longer. So far we’ve not had any bad luck.
• Someone asked if the design was silkscreened on, and I’ll be honest, I don’t know what process is used to put the design on the tee. What I can tell you is that it isn’t like a hard plastic iron on. I actually ordered a tee from Zazzle and it came with the design like that, and while it looked brighter, it also was uncomfortable and plasticky. This design is more embedded in the fabric and especially on the black tees, has a slightly faded vintage look.

Thanks for all of your interest so far folks, if you have any other questions I’ll do my best to answer them!