Fort Lauderdale Swap Shop, Flea market and drive-in theater in Fort Lauderdale, United States.
Fort Lauderdale Swap Shop is an outdoor market with multiple drive-in screens in Florida. Rows of covered stalls spread across the grounds, where vendors offer vegetables, tools, jewelry and used furniture, while tall movie screens rise above parking lots behind them.
Preston Henn and Betty Henn opened the site as a drive-in in 1963, adding the flea market after visiting the west coast. The covered food court arose in 1979 and was later enclosed to house daily circus performances that ran until 2006.
The Thunderbird name recalls the American suburban drive-in culture, where families watched films together from their cars. Today shoppers walk between vendor tables bargaining over clothes and fruit, pausing to chat with sellers who call out deals and wave customers closer.
The flea market opens daily and weekday visits offer quieter walks between vendor tables. Drive-in screenings begin after dark, making it possible to shop in daylight and stay for a film in the evening.
The Hanneford Family Circus performed daily in the food court from 1989 to 2006, drawing millions of visitors. Old posters still recall the era when acrobats and clowns appeared between food stalls, and shoppers paused to watch.
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