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Tourist cabins, auto and motor courts

Ghostsoldier

Call Me a Cab
Messages
2,410
Location
Starke, Florida, USA
My home state.
6784159_orig.jpg

Rob
 
Rock Village Court / Rock Village Lodge. Springfield, Missouri. Built in 1947.

Rock_Village_Court_Late_1940s.JPG


1951:

Rock_Village_Postcard_1951.JPG


Circa 1953:

Rock_Village_Court_Est_1947.JPG


Received an upgrade in the mid-1950s with a new name, new signage as well as named dining room and lounge.

Rock_Village_Lodge_Postcard.JPG


1959 billboard to the south of the Lodge:

Rock_Village_Lodge_Billboard.JPG


It was razed in the mid-1970s and a new motel built. This pic is from 2007 when the "new" was well worn off.

Rock_Village_2007.JPG


This past month it was back to barren land and anticipating a What-A-Burger franchise.

Rock_Village_Nowadays.JPG
 
Messages
17,245
Location
New York City
Rock Village Court / Rock Village Lodge. Springfield, Missouri. Built in 1947.

View attachment 441132

1951:

View attachment 441133

Circa 1953:

View attachment 441134

Received an upgrade in the mid-1950s with a new name, new signage as well as named dining room and lounge.

View attachment 441135

1959 billboard to the south of the Lodge:

View attachment 441136

It was razed in the mid-1970s and a new motel built. This pic is from 2007 when the "new" was well worn off.

View attachment 441130

This past month it was back to barren land and anticipating a What-A-Burger franchise.

View attachment 441131

"It was razed in the mid-1970s and a new motel built. This pic is from 2007 when the 'new' was well worn off."
Kermit head shake.gif
 
Messages
10,947
Location
My mother's basement
I’ve been reading Chester H. Liebs’s “Main Street to Miracle Mile, American Roadside Architecture.”

On first hearing mention of this book, maybe two weeks ago, I ordered a secondhand copy. It was first published by Johns Hopkins University Press in 1985 and reprinted in 1995. I have the later edition.

The chapter on what became the motel would fascinate most of the regular visitors to this thread. It’s not exactly the most scholarly thing you’ll ever read (thank the god of your choice for that), but it has extensive endnotes and the reader is left with the sense the information is reliable. Liebs’s tone is amenable to a popular audience. It’s a fun read.
 
Last edited:

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