{"id":49491,"date":"2012-11-29T05:15:05","date_gmt":"2012-11-29T12:15:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.wend.ca\/?p=49491"},"modified":"2021-12-29T21:37:43","modified_gmt":"2021-12-30T02:37:43","slug":"eamons-camp","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wend.ca\/?p=49491","title":{"rendered":"Eamon\u2019s Bungalow Camp"},"content":{"rendered":"

Way way back in the 40s and 50s, there was a movement called the Art Moderne<\/em> movement, where sleek homes and roadside gas station-motel-drive-in restaurants were in vogue. Art Moderne is less cheap motel and more Radiator Springs<\/a> (Cars) meets Route 66 small-town America.<\/p>\n

In 1949, Eamon’s Bungalow Camp on Crowchild Trail opened as an eatery. It started small and served food to customers taking a leisurely Sunday drive between Calgary and Cochrane. Surrounded by lush farmland with a great view of the mountains, the eatery was a hit with Calgarians. <\/p>\n

In 1951, the current building was built after a fire destroyed the original. In 1952, the site included a Super Service Texaco gas station and by 1955 six bungalows for weary travellers were available and sold as “Eamon’s One-Stop Tourist Service Centre.” With the arrival of the TransCanada, traffic to Eamon’s dropped and eventually, the facility closed. Until recently it was a dealership lot but still a common sight for anyone driving to Cochrane. <\/p>\n

Not much is left of the old buildings, merely a single shell on supports and the iconic Jetson-ish space-age sign. The adjacent development of the Tuscany C-train station spells the demise of Eamon’s, as it is currently sitting on what will become the station’s Park and Ride. This is a decision that has made many people unhappy (including Cory Hart who shot his “I Am By Your Side” video at the station) because this is one of the last Art Moderne gas stations in Canada.<\/p>\n

If you want to pay tribute to the site one last time, the only way to get there is to head down Rocky Ridge Road from Country Hills Boulevard and make a right onto Eamon Road.<\/p>\n