Vintage Aerial Photos of Elizabethton
In 2011,cartercountyhistory.com staff had the pleasure of visiting Nashville,TN with the Carter County Leadership team. As part of our visit we were able to meet with the head of TDOT as well as several staff members. During the visit I requested some vintage aerial photos of the area. I have posted some of these photos and have compared them to more current Google Earth satellite photos. As you will see, the majority of the area in the late 50's was dedicated to housing and farming. Except for a few small businesses, most everyone worked at Bemberg or Beaunit which later became North American Rayon Corporation.
The first photo is a unique aerial photo taken from the southeast sometime around 1970. The black roof building in the lower left corner is the old Smithdeal's Grocery store. The image on the right is a 2012 satellite image from Google Maps.
1953 Elizabethton Aerial Photo
This is an aerial photo of Elizabethton taken in 1953.
2012 Elizabethton Aerial Photo
This is a Google Earth photo of Elizabethton.
State Line Road and Arney Street (1953)
This is a photo of the State Line Road as it was in 1953. Notice the absence of the 19E Bypass
State Line Road and Arney Street (2012)
This is the 2012 photo of the State Line Road area.
Beaunit and Bemberg Plants (1953)
This is the area around the Beaunit and Bemberg plants. Notice the fields across from the plants.that now house the Elizabethton High. You can see the football field to the right that sits behind what was the Elizabethton High School at the time. You can also see Bemberg Hill which is now the home of Peebles and Cato's. This was the community sleigh riding spot back during the time this photo was taken. For some video footage of Bemberg Hill you can click on the Bemberg Sleigh Riding link.
Beaunit and Bemberg Plants (2012)
As you can see, the majority of the Beaunit (NARC) building and the Bemberg buildings are gone. Those buildings were replaced with Wal-Mart and Lowe's Home Improvements.
West Elk Ave. (1953)
This is West Elk Avenue as it was in the early 50's.
West Elk Ave. (2012)
West Elk Avenue as it is now.
Broad Street (1953)
In the middle of this photo is Broad Street. During this time the majority of Broad Street was residential.
Broad Street (2012)
Broad Street as it loos today. Most of the houses have been torn down to make way for Fast Food, Used Car Sales, and Banks. You can also see the Bristol Hwy 5 lane bridge in the upper left corner. I have often wondered why they put a turn lane on a bridge!
Elk Avenue (Downtown Elizabethton 1953)
This is a 1953 photo of Elk Ave. in Downtown Elizabethton. Most of the rooftops in the downtown area were houses.
Elk Avenue (Downtown Elizabethton 2012)
This is the downtown area as it looked in 2012. The houses have given way to stores and shops.
