The first Whataburger restaurant in Nashville, TN, located at 1413 Dickerson Road opened in late 1954 or early 1955. The restaurant had no inside seating, offering drive up or curb service to motorists. A large menu board was hung on the sides of the small white and orange building and featured the Whataburger. A Whataburger was a jumbo sized hamburger that came dressed with mustard, chopped lettuce, chopped onion, tomato slices and dill pickle slices. Other items were Whataburger Jr.; Just-a-burger; Coney Island hot dog; French Fries, Soft Drinks and Milkshakes. In 1968, the price of a Whataburger was thirty-five cents. A Whataburger, order of French fries and a large coke cost seventy-three cents, including sales tax.
The first owners were Marvin E. West and his wife Odessa West. The West's obtained a franchise through the Whataburger Restaurants based in Texas. Mr. West was living in a trailer home on the property and he died in 1955 when a fire destroyed the home.
Joseph J. Dugger and his wife Hattie owned and operated the Mimosa Gardens Motel located at 1415 Dickerson road, next to the Whataburger and lived in a residence behind the motel. Mr. and Mrs. Dugger purchased the Whataburger restaurant in late 1955.
In 1962 the Duggers sold the restaurant and motel to Jesse and Linda McMurtry. The McMurtrys had worked for the Duggers for several years helping to run both the motel and restaurant.
In 1970 Carl and Hilda Dean and Hilda’s daughter Linda McMurtry, ex-wife of Jesse McMurtry purchased the business. Whataburger Restaurants expanded the market in Tennessee and the Deans and McMurtry were given an option to make a substantial investment and relocate to a new building or give up the franchise. They chose to give up the franchise and changed the name of the business to Wantaburger.
In the early '70s, Whataburger opened locations on Gallatin Pike in the Rivergate area and on Charlotte Ave. in West Nashville. All Nashville locations have since gone out of business.
Click here for a great view of the Wantaburger by John Baeder
This image has been copyrighted and cannot be used without permission of John Baeder.
The building below was the first Whataburger building in Texas and opened in 1950 Very similar to the Dickerson Road building.
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What-a-burger - East Nashville by Debie Oeser Cox is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
THANK YOU for this bit of history. Its been a debate with friends for awhile -- if there was once Whataburger here or not, and if so, where. Now I know!!
ReplyDeleteNo debate needed ever yes it was here we old people know
DeleteIn the earliy 60's I lived in the big white house behind the what-a-burger for a few yrs. We went in the dr.beside the what-a-burger that led upto his trailer the house was on the right side.
ReplyDeleteIn the mid-70's there was a What-A-Burger located in the 3800 block of Nolensville Road, located behind the Circuit City.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThere were several What-a-burger's in Nashville in the 70's and later. One on Nolensville Rd, one on Gallatin Rd at Rivergate, one on Charlotte, maybe more. The reason What-a-burger took the franchise away from the owners of the Dickerson Rd restaurant was because they planned on building all the others. The Dickerson Rd location owners were given the option of building a new place or losing the franchise and they chose to give up the franchise.
DeleteI worked at the What-a-Burger .
ReplyDeleteMy dad use to take us there all the time I remember him always cutting up with the waitress calling her shorty and little bit
Deletewhat year did whataburger leave nashville
DeleteI worked for Mr and Mrs west,I was working there when their trailer behind the whataburger burned.they died in that fire.im 87years old.
DeleteI'd like to know what it would take to get them back in the Greater Nashville area, and WHERE is the closest one to us. I can find them at every exit in Texas, but not around Nashville.
ReplyDeleteHere I am commenting 2 years later, but the closest Whataburger to Nashville is currently in Fultondale, AL off 65 just north of Birmingham.
DeleteAUG. 2022. There is one being built now in Clarksville Tn.
DeleteI remember my dad taking us there in the 70s I remember him cutting up with this one waitress he'd always call her shortly. Good memories
ReplyDeleteClosest one is in Alabama.... We do need one tho!!!
ReplyDeleteWas there ever a Whataburger near the 70 100 split in west Nashville?
ReplyDeleteI don't know the answer to that. Hopefully someone else will comment.
DeleteI grew up in Bellevue (from 1971 till 1983) and there was a What-a-burger in Westgate. That was at the highway 70s and highway 100 split.
DeleteAte at one today in Fort Walton FL. used to go to the one on Dickerson RD as a kid.
ReplyDeleteI remember the Whantaburger on Dickerson Rd around 1977 still in business next to the Savoy Motel. The building is still there. The Whataburger on Nolensville Rd was the A frame type with covered parking and sat back up on a hill and was very prominent from the road with its orange stripped roof. (Bass Tire sits there now) It was still open around 1982 when I ate there. It closed soon after and torn down soon after that. The one at Rivergate was the A frame type as well.
ReplyDeleteThe Rivergate building is still up -- it's a florist shop now, but still has the A frame.
ReplyDeleteyep, the one on Nolensville Rd. was beside Sir Pizza..ssorta-kinda set back off the road a little. It was the A-frame and I thought the giant w was mounted on the front of the A-frame?....HUGE burger!!...for those young people just take it from us old'ens.....We remember, and remember well!...and how 'bout Taco-Tico. Marvin Hopper Enterprises!.....
ReplyDeleteIf I’m not mistaken there was one in Lebanon A-frame shaped in the late 60’s to 70’s. The building is still there.
ReplyDeleteMy parents always called it What-A-Burger even after the name change. My Granny lived just a couple blocks from there. I was very young 3 maybe 5 at most. It is one of the very few memories I have of her. We would either stop by or go get burgers, milkshakes and she loved their lemonade. I remember the big menu on the side of the building. Years later I was driving a Semi through TX and saw What-A-Burger called my dad immediately and ask him if that was the same place. That was when he informed me yes but no. That the place and burgers I remember were Want-A-Burger but it had been What-A-Burger before I was born. Never stopped at one cause I didn't want it to disappoint and ruin my great memory with my Granny. However next time I come home to Nashville I think I am gonna pick up momma and we are gonna go take a drive to Symrna and get a burger. Take a little walk down memory lane in a different location.
ReplyDeleteI am 62 years old now , I used to eat at the Water- A - Burger on Dickerson Rd As a kid in the mid 1970s I loved it and now as a 62 year old man I still love it now just I did it when I was a 15 or 17 year old
ReplyDeleteI was a teenager in the 70s and remember the wantaburger. We lived up the street and I always thought they had the best burgers! Thanks for the history, I was curious if it was the same and I knew it was Wantabutger when I was going there.
ReplyDeleteThe was a girl that worked the Dickerson road
ReplyDeleteIn the late 80s. Teresa I think
Cool chick.