Dicks Drive-In celebrates 70th anniversary

SEATTLE, Wash. — In January of 1954, Dick’s Drive-In opened its first location on Northeast 45th Street in Seattle’s Wallingford neighborhood.

Even 70 years later, the Pacific Northwest fast food restaurant continues to represent the iconic 1950s crossover between fast food and what teens previously knew as the automobile.

Dick’s Drive-in was started by Dick Spady and his two other partners named Dr. “Tom” Thomas and Warren Ghormley, according to HistoryLink.org.

Spady would later buy Thomas out of his share.

Spady was born in Portland in 1923. He was an entrepreneur focused on making a difference. He offered his employees the highest pay in the industry, 100% paid health insurance coverage, and more than a million dollars in scholarship funds. He died in 2016 at the age of 92.

Back in 2012, the Seattle mayor declared a “Dick’s Drive-In Day.”

The Drive-In continues to serve up hamburgers, fries and shakes while remaining a local business owned by the Spady family.

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