By Dakota Doyle

For many of the current residents of Scarborough, a great deal likely don’t remember Route 1 before the blue collar farming community was lost to the modern town it is today. This change came in the late 60s, and early 70s where the route was heavily disrupted from what it used to be. Before the development of Oak Hill, before Hannaford took its root, and before urbanization confirmed its hold there were many retailers that had a rich connection to the community. 

Including one of the first motels in the United States, The Danish Village, which is honored by the arch in Memorial Park. And the Portland Twin Drive- In which was on the land that the park resides upon today, was a place popular for teenagers and families to come together. These places are only two amongst countless other businesses that had their home along Route 1. 

About a half mile south of the historic Scarborough Downs, until 1967 a motel of sorts could be found off of Route 1 in Scarborough. Originally built in 1929, the then Den Danske Landsby, commonly known as the Danish Village was built by hotel owner Henry Rines and architect Peter Holdenson (who also designed the State Theatre). Aptly named, the hotel was built to represent a little medieval Danish town. Characterized by its winding cobblestone streets, the detailed cottages, brought together by the spiraling town hall. 

The units in which people used to stay consisted of couple rooms, beds, and a bathroom. The Den Danske Landsby Stue was a cafe on location that served guests both breakfast and lunch. The Danish Village was marketed as a quaint getaway from the busy highway where guests could “rest comfortably and quietly”. In the center of the grounds a large statue could be found, which is based on the Danish heroine and legend of Niels Ebbesen. The hotel also had a restaurant on sight which brought in people both staying there and local members of the community. 

Even though a lumber yard now resides on the grounds in which the Danish Village used to be, the town of Scarborough has honored the history and legacy of the Danish Village by placing an arch from the property at Memorial Park. 

Farther down Route 1 in Scarborough a small take out hamburger and hot dog stand could be found. In 1945 married couple Virginia Eileen Simpson and Harold Simpson bought Burnell’s Tavern on Route 1. They renovated it into their original take on a take-out hamburger stand, which they named Simposon’s Hamburgers. 

The joint was famous for their hamburgers with fried onions, the burger was based on Harolds fathers recipe that was made popular at his restaurant in Falmouth called Simpson’s Grove. The couple operated the hamburger joint for 25 years before they ultimately sold it in the seventies.

Moving towards what is now Oak Hill, along Route 1 near the intersection of Sawyer Road a shopping center could be found; called Mammoth Mart. The chain could be found in New Hampshire, North Carolina, Vermont, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, and of course Maine. In Scarborough it was located in a shopping center called Orion Center which is now the location of MaineHealth Professional Park. 

Known for its signage, the mascot of the store was Marty the Elephant which gave the business its name; Mammoth Mart. The founder, Max Coffmen, was the pioneer for modern department stores. Mammoth Mart was known for its cash registers, which were located at the front of the building rather than in each department. A practice that is now found in most department stores.

At the peak of it’s reign as a department store Mammoth Mart had almost 90 locations, one of these being the Scarborough Location which closed in 1974 when the company filed for bankruptcy and the chain was sold to King’s Department Stores. Later replaced by Sampson’s Supermarket, then Hannaford.

Continuing a bit down Route 1 in Scarborough, across from Mammoth Mart the Portland Twin Drive-In could be found. Opening in July of 1949 and originally called the Portland Drive-In Theatre it was instantly a hot spot for locals of all ages. Later on, in the 60s a second screen was built on the property and the name was changed to Portland Twin Drive-In. 

At night when traffic passed by the drive in, it often slowed down on Route 1 with people wanting to catch a glimpse of a movie playing. The screen dubbed the “east” screen faced Route 1 and allowed people to view it from the road, this screen only featured G and PG rated films once the second was installed. The new screen was called the “west” screen and featured the rest of the films, with it’s back to Route 1 and it faced many homes, leading to the nickname of “Sin City” for the neighborhood. There was also a snack shack on location, the grounds were also used by the local Baptist Church for services on Sunday mornings throughout the 50s and 60s. 

With the onset of indoor theatres being more popular than drive-ins, the Portland Twin Drive-In ultimately closed in 1986. Now in the location of the Drive-In; Sparkle Clean Car Wash, several local businesses (including Oishi Japanese Restaurant and Bar), as well as Memorial Park.
Moving towards modern Oak Hill while the land was still heavily forested a little toy shop could be found off of Route 1. Well into the 70s, Libby’s Toy Store was run by “Peachie” Libby and was a wonderful shop for locals and their children to visit and explore the toys to be found. 

Turning fully to what is now Oak Hill, along Route 1 an ice cream shop could be found. Long before Bayleys Ice Cream or the Dairy Corner was open, locals of Scarborough could go to Foley’s Ice Cream for a sweet fix. The ice cream shop had farm made ice cream and had a make your own sundae bar, according to locals they had some of the best hand packed ice cream locally found. Which meant the ice cream was richer and thicker than modern commercial ice cream due to less air entering the ice cream during the packaging process. 

Since the town of Scarborough’s development many businesses have come and gone all along Route 1; the development of this is fascinating in terms of what has been forgotten in comparison to spots that were essential to the fabrics of the town and the people that lived here. Locations like The Danish Village might still be honored by memorials and plaques but some have been lost to time; kept only by the people that still remember or books found in the corner of a local library. 

Many thanks to Dakota Doyle for researching and writing this piece. Dakota is a Scarborough High School student with a strong interest in both English and history; the former she hopes to study in college.

Photos from Scarborough Historical Society and RetailHellUnderground.com.