Places you went to when you were younger but they are long gone.

[irishpipes]

Old Chicago. A completely indoor amusement park so it was open year round. They had great commercials.

[Sister Havana]

Originally Posted by irishpipes

Old Chicago. A completely indoor amusement park so it was open year round. They had great commercials.

You beat me to it! I loved Old Chicago. I grew up in Bolingbrook so I went there quite a bit. (My parents' friends owned the Buster Brown store inside the mall and that's where my sister and I got our shoes as kids.) The combination of being built on what was then the "wrong" side of I-55, the lack of major anchor stores, and Great America opening in the Chicago area was what killed it. Too bad. It was just too far ahead of its time.

While we're talking about defunct amusement parks in the Chicago area, I submit Dispensa's Kiddie Kingdom. (Warning, music plays when you open that page) My sister had several birthday parties there.

[irishpipes]

Originally Posted by Sister Havana

Great America opening in the Chicago area was what killed it.

I grew up very close to Great America. While it is still there, it was WAY better back then when it was Marriott's Great America rather than Six Flags. The main theme was Looney Tunes back then, and each area of the park had a definite theme as well (County Fair, Orleans Place, etc.). I miss the way it used to be!

[TonyB06]

The Red Barn -- Midwest regional fast food chain (it was in Cincinnati).
Their cheeseburgers were much better than McDonalds.

[DaffyKD]

Don't know about other places, but Farrell's has returned to Southern CA. The one by me is MUCH smaller than the one I would go to after all the HS football games, and my kids have not been there when someone has ordered a Zoo or eaten a Trough.

I miss the original Knott's Berry Farm. The Ghost Town is the original. It was built to keep the kids entertained while families waited in line for what seemed forever to eat at the Chicken House. It was free, the only ride was the stage coach ride which managed to get robbed every time it went out, there was always a gunfight in the middle of the street. Today, it is just a Western Themed Disneyland.

DaffyKD

[Sister Havana]

Some places I used to frequent in my IU days that are now long gone:

Karma Records
Discount Den/The Den
Garcia's Pizza in a Pan
White Rabbit
Mars
Morgenstern's books (this was my favorite new bookstore)
BW3 (the old Dunnkirk Square location - bought my first legal drink there!)
Aristotle's bookstore
Bookcellar (this was my favorite used bookstore)
Ladyman's Cafe
Mustard's

[Sister Havana]

Originally Posted by irishpipes

Old Chicago. A completely indoor amusement park so it was open year round. They had great commercials.

By the way, you can still ride the Chicago Loop roller coaster from Old Chicago. It's now at Canobie Lake Park in New Hampshire and has been renamed Canobie Corkscrew.