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Columbia Gas Dept. GAS LEAK or GAS SMELL Contact Numbers 24 hrs/ 365 days 270-384-2006 or 9-1-1 Call before you dig 
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Early history of the Circle R Drive-In By "Jim" A Bit of Background As best as can be determined from court documents, the line of ownership of the Circle R property (real estate, that is) up to the J.D. Harper Golden Era was thus:Annie Wilkinson, et alia, sold a lot to J.C. Marshall & wife, 1941 (this was one of the two lots upon which the Circle R was later built.)Clifton Rogers & wife sold an adjoining lot to the Marshalls in 1941.The Marshalls sold the two lots as one parcel to C.T. Jones & wife Louetta in 1944. The Joneses sold the property to Ruel "W.R." Wooten & wife Runie in 1956; the Wootens almost immediately began construction of the Circle R. The Wootens sold the land & restaurant in mid-1957 to J.D. Harper & Chester Caughron according to the Adair County News, but only Harper's name appears on the deed.The Hilltop Cafe's place in the "lineage" of the Circle R is a bit of an enigma. There's no mention of the Hilltop in the Adair County News through the end of 1949, and the passing references to it in the 1956 articles herein are somewhat ambiguous in that respect. One point, however, is perfectly clear: the Circle R opened for business on Tuesday, June 26, 1956. The Circle R: April, 1956 - July, 1957 With one turn of the key on a fateful June morning nearly 54 years ago, the doors of the Circle R Drive-In Restaurant swung wide, bringing a completely new dining experience to Columbia and adding several words to the local lexicon, including carhop, curb service, and drive-in. Not since the grand opening of the Meadow Hill Inn in the spring of '47 had an Adair County eatery attracted such attention or generated such excitement. The first hint of the good things to come appeared in a short front page article in the April 11, 1956 Adair County News, less than a month after Ruel & Runie Wooten purchased a parcel of land from C.T. & Louetta Jones: A new Drive-In Restaurant is now under construction in Columbia and should be open for business by late May or early June. Located on the site of the former Hilltop Cafe, on Jamestown Street, the new building is being built by Mr. W.R. Wooten, owner of Wooten's Department Store. Paul Caldwell is doing the construction work. The new restaurant will furnish curb service and will feature short orders, sandwiches and ice cream. Mr. Wooten has employed a local man and wife team to run the restaurant for him."Just a few weeks later, the Circle R doors opened for the first time on the morning of Tuesday, June 26, 1956. An article in the Wednesday, June 27 edition of the News gave an astonishing array of details about the new restaurant, down to the color scheme and the names of the carhops: "New 'Circle R' Drive-In OpensA large ad, apparently a reproduction of the entire menu, appeared in the next issue (July 4) of the News. The ad noted that the Circle R was open from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday (11 p.m. on Saturdays) and from 2 p.m. 'til 11 p.m. on Sundays. The ad also stated: "The Circle R Drive-In Restaurant is a new organization, Our success will depend on our ability to serve you in a way in which you will be satisfied...Our aim is to be an asset for the town of Columbia to be proud of...;" that patrons had the option to "Order by Phone. Your order will be waiting when you arrive or ready for you to take home. Phone number 5511;" and that "We make our own ice. It is as pure as the water you drink and is untouched by human hands."But, ohhhhhhhhhh, the culinary delights of the menu itself! For a mere 95 cents, you could enjoy a Kingburger -- "Twice as big. Twice as good. lb. of freshly ground beef in two patties. Smooth melted cheese. Shredded lettuce with our own special tartar sauce and pickle" - with french fries, cole slaw, a large Coca Cola, Richardson's Root Beer, or a cup of coffee, and an "extra large, extra thick" malt or milkshake - your choice of chocolate, pineapple, strawberry, or butterscotch. What a deal! (In January, 1957, Mr. Wooten "incorporated" the name Kingburger; the paperwork is recorded in Adair County Miscellaneous Record Book 3.) Other items from the extensive menu included the Hill-Billy Bacon and Tomato Sandwich with "Plenty of thick sliced bacon...A three-decker for the hungry person," for 40 cents; a deluxe cheeseburger, 30 cents; a Hot Pup (french fried hot dog) with relish or barbecue sauce, 20 cents; and breakfast (two eggs, bacon, biscuit or toast, jelly, & coffee), 60 cents. For an extra dime, you could get "cured ham (not country)" instead of bacon. It didn't take long for the Circle R to attract attention well outside of Columbia. A front page Adair County News article in the September 5, 1956 edition stated: "The new Circle R Drive-In restaurant owned by Mr. W.R. Wooten gained some national publicity recently in the trade magazine 'Drive-In.'Almost exactly a year after the Circle R opened, the News reported in the July 10, 1957 issue that the Wootens had sold it the previous week "to J.D. Harper of Harper's Market and Chester Caughron, Glendale, California, formerly of Columbia...No changes in management or service will be made." (The deed was recorded July 8th, 1957. Messrs. Caughron & Harper were brothers-in-law, Mrs. Caughron being the former Miss) Thelma Harper. The above information is adapted from "Swinging Wide the Doors: The Circle R Drive-In Opens, 1956, " copyrighted 2006 & 2009 by Jim Garner; material is used with permission. This story was posted on 2010-04-05 07:54:37
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