Melrose Lanes (Demolished)
Nashville, TN
Photo courtesy Pinslasher

Here are a couple of photos of Melrose Lanes, now formerly of Nashville, TN. This center was open from 1942 and just closed on July 4th 2005. The building was only a lease and the owner of the building wants to level the building and build a office complex. This place also is a 2 level center (1-16 on top, 17-30 on the bottom). Many thanks to Pinslasher for info.

You didn't have to be a bowler to notice the Melrose Lanes marquee. Rising above Franklin Road, the sign had been welcoming drivers for decades, promising an evening of strikes, league nights, birthday parties, and plenty of friendly competition. It's the kind of roadside landmark that became part of the neighborhood, even for people who never walked through the front doors.

Melrose Lanes opened in 1942 and remained one of Nashville's best-known bowling centers for more than sixty years. It had a feature that made it a little different from most alleys. The building was split across two levels, with lanes 1 through 16 upstairs and lanes 17 through 30 downstairs. First-time visitors often did a double take when they realized there was another set of lanes below. Sitting next door to the old Melrose Theater, it made this stretch of Franklin Road a popular destination for a night out.

Melrose Lanes (Demolished)
Nashville, TN
Photo courtesy Pinslasher

The final frame was bowled on July 4, 2005, after the owners lost their lease. It wasn't long before demolition crews moved in, clearing the site for new development and bringing another longtime Nashville landmark to an end.

UPDATE: The building and its classic roadside marquee were demolished later in 2005, and the property has since been redeveloped. 08-26