Lumberton

Photograph April 2003: Courtesy of Phil Edwards

With its signature A-frame Gate Lodge having been shorn of its cupola/spire, squared off, and then stuccoed in the 1990s, it and the entire Motor Lodge suffered further indignity when the complex was painted a somewhat revolting shade of pink during the middle 2000s. With its stucco painted pink, the Motor Lodge lost most of whatever curb appeal it had retained after the earlier poorly executed makeover. Surely the Lodge will slide faster and further down the ranks of hospitality offerings that serve the Lumberton area. Nonetheless, the Lumberton Motor Lodge has been remarkable in its longevity as a Howard Johnson and had managed to maintain its Orange Roofed Gate Lodge--albeit in altered form.

Photographs December 10, 2006

Postcard circa 1970s

Photographs courtesy of Bob Venditti

Weary of its advertised low price for a night's stay, Bob was surprised to discover that his room was in better shape than he had expected, and that the old Motor Lodge had held up fairy well--considering.

However, he pointed out that the property's exterior showed signs of "deferred maintenance," and had suffered visits from Cendant's curb appeal police. Bob recalled that he stopped at Lumberton for a quick lunch while headed north back in 1971, and that the "restaurant's foyer had Plexiglas holders on the wall filled with HJ directories." He said that he took one and may even still have it!