One of York County’s older McDonald’s has moved to capture traffic at a new hot spot about a mile north of its current location.
The owners of the Route 74 McDonald’s, not far from West York High School, have built a new store in the Target shopping center in West Manchester Township. This is a case study in how sprawl is creeping outward in a radius around York.
Q. When did the York area get its first McDonald’s restaurant?…
A. The first McDonald’s opened for business on Feb. 24, 1970, in North York. It has since moved, and its original building is occupied by Bob’s Intowne Spas. The McDonald’s moving near Target was built about four years later.
Also of interest:
- Before there was McDonald’s, there was Bury’s Famous Hamburgers in York, Pa.
- Before Geno’s made news in Philly, Gino’s headlined in York.
- About Avalong Dairy and Melvin’s Drive-In: ‘I am some what familiar with the history of the area’.
- Mack’s is short for McDaniel’s, but in York County it means ice cream.
- The 1950s, ’60s: ‘The greatest time to grow up in York, Pa.’.
- U.S. Grant dines at Mick E. Dee’s.
Edited, 9/22/10.



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I turned 6 years old the day the 1st York McDonald’s opened – on my birthday! Boy was I so excited. Before that my grandparents would drive me up to Harrisburg to go to a McDonalds. I think we may have even had to eat in the car.
Pam, hard to imagine driving to Harrisburg to eat at McDonald’s. But those fries have always had a strong draw!/Jim