For those in New Iberia, Friday and Saturday nights at the Echo Drive-Inn were a time for fun filled with film, popcorn and more.

The Echo Drive-Inn was located at Juarez and Jane Streets. It was a hit with teenagers as they spent their youth with friends, dates and during the drive-in’s peak days in the 1940s, ’50s, ’60s and ’70s, drive-in movies were the go-to place.

Drive-ins maintained popularity as both a space for families to spend time with each other as well as an affordable date night option. Drive-ins could only show movies during certain times of the year and were dependent on having decent weather.

A drive-in was the perfect place to park the car and remain socially distant before one was required to do so, and it allowed people to make memories, some of which are still felt to this day for those in the community.

One thing the kids enjoyed more than anything was the fun they had sneaking their friends into the Echo Drive-Inn, sometimes storing them in the trunk of their cars, like Kevin Woods, who had a blast with his friends when he was younger.

“We used to go in our Ford Station Wagon with about eight people in it when we were in high school,” Woods said.

While she may or may not have sneaked her friends in the trunk of her car, Scarlett Sumrall enjoyed her time at the movies with her family.

“I remember as a kid going to see ‘The Legend from Boggy Creek’ with my family,” Sumrall said. “There are places in the country that still have drive-ins, wish we did.”

And while drive-ins may have lost some of their popularity, it was a time for fun with family and friends when they were in their heyday.

Patty Rodgers was one of those people who enjoyed going to the Echo Drive-Inn because it was so affordable for her family of seven.

“Having so many kids in our family,that was the cheapest way my parents could entertain us all,” Rodgers said. “My brothers liked the swings down front more than any movie.”