I have been scouring the web for information but have come up empty. The question is, would a parking lot in a back country town circa 1950’s have parking stalls laid out or would it just be the parking lot itself and no stalls would be laid out?
If memory serves, just a lot, most likely unpaved gravel. Even a paved lot would have lacked lines. Back then a forgotten concept called courtesy was in effect.
Gee, having grown up in the back country, we still don’t have marked lots in a lot of places and its 2012.
Paint technology has a lot to do with this. Formulas that stand up well to wear and tear and the elements were developing, but not anywhere near as permanent as currently. Highways departments spent lots of money repainting things more frequently than currently (although budget issues have a lot to do with that more recently, too, another reason more permanent paint is needed.)
The private businesses with the money to spend on striping would tend to be upscale and urban, so wouldn’t be likely in the application you describe.
Another historical factor working in favor of model railroaders? The humungous parking lots we’re used to now were just starting to come into fashion around 1960, so the restricted real estate we usually have on the layout actually means small parking lots are prototypical for this era.
And one reason why you don’t see many shopping malls depicted on layouts. They just take too much real estate. Reminds me of the time I was commissioned to build a model of Lambeau Field in Green Bay. Hello, Selective Compression Hotline? [:^)]
Aha, the lack of marked parking spaces makes things a lot easier.
Ah not so quick Mon ami. If you want a fancy “Hoydy Toydy” dirt parking lot, the spaces would be marked out with rows of stones painted white. I remember a friend of mine when I was about eight years old had to paint the rocks at the beginning of every summer. What a dusty treat that was in the heat.
Brent[C):-)]
I will pass on the hoydy toydy in favor of the easy easy.
Maybe not marked, but they would have “bumpers”, usually old RR ties back then. Parking lots were generally not the slick, bituminous surfaced and sealed ones we have today. Some were plain gravel, others macadam or chip seal, while some were actually old asphalt shingles mixed in with heavy bitumen and rolled. I remember around filling stations (yes, that’s what we called them) the lot surface would be literally “paved” with pop bottle caps squashed into the surfacing material. [;)] Just sayin’