Frostop Drive In, located in Huntington, W.Va., continues to compete well with national fast-food restaurants for customers. (Credit: Ken Drenten)

By Ken Drenten

L.S. Harvey opened the very first Frostop Drive-In in Springfield, Ohio, in 1926, almost immediately following the paving of decent roads in this country.

The chain grew quickly in the late 1940s and 1950s, reaching a peak of 350 locations across the U.S. in the mid-1960s, mostly in the Midwest and South.

But with the widespread growth of big fast-food brands, the old root beer stands like Frostop began fading away. Today, there are only 13 documented Frostop locations remaining, and none in Ohio.

Fortunately for us in Ohio, there’s a Frostop Drive-In in nearby Huntington, W.Va., complete with the iconic rotating root beer mug atop its roof. Located at 1449 Hal Greer Blvd., Huntington’s Frostop, built in 1959, stands out like a time capsule from a bygone era.

Curb service is still available, and customers can choose to eat inside the small restaurant space. The menu includes hot dogs and coneys, hamburgers and other sandwiches, fries, onion rings, ice cream and of course, that tasty, creamy-smooth Frostop Root Beer.

About 15 or so years ago, before I became aware of the drive-in in Huntington, I made a number of stops at a store in Mount Vernon, Ohio, that carried Frostop Root Beer by the bottle. I won’t name the store because I’m not sure if they still carry the brand. Frostop really is good enough to go out of your way to find if you’re a fan of root beer.

Even if you can’t get to Huntington for your Frostop fix, the bottled root beer, distributed from Columbus, Ohio, is now available at stores like Rural King, Ace Hardware and Speedway stores in Columbus and Dayton.

By the way, six of the remaining Frostop Drive-Ins are located in Louisiana; others are located in Mississippi, Idaho, Illinois and Utah. Besides Huntington, the closest location to Ohio is in Tell City, Indiana.

Ken Drenten is creator and editor of Dusty-Tires.com, a travel blog for out-of-the-ordinary places in Ohio.

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