Mayflower Motel (Gone)
Phoenix, AZ Photo courtesy Elgin MacMillan
This sign is located along E. Van Buren in Phoenix, just kiddy corner from
Bill Johnson's Original Big Apple Restaurant.
Not quite sure what the name or type of business that was once a this
location, but this sign is still rather eye-catching. Many thanks to Elgin MacMillanfor info. 10-05
The sign was later identified as belonging to the Mayflower Motel, also known as the Mayflower Motel & Apartments. The property operated during the 1950s and 1960s, offering a mixture of overnight motel rooms and longer-term apartment accommodations.
The Mayflower was part of the long motel row that served travelers following U.S. Routes 60, 70, and 80 through Phoenix. Its location across from Bill Johnson’s placed it near one of the liveliest stops on Van Buren, where diners once found sawdust on the floor, pistol-packing waitresses, and country music playing near the old radio broadcast stage.
Mayflower Motel
Phoenix, AZ Photo courtesy Elgin MacMillan
By the time this photograph was taken, the Mayflower name and neon had already been stripped from the marquee. The empty metal shell remained beside the road for several more years, looking like a sign waiting for a business that was never coming back.
UPDATE: The former name of this motel is the Mayflower Motel. According to the website on old Phoenix, this now blank sign may have also been showing off the home of a prior motel. 12-08
UPDATE: The mystery sign was confirmed as the former Mayflower Motel marquee. The motel, apartments, and blank sign were subsequently demolished and removed. Bill Johnson’s Original Big Apple across the street closed in 2015 and is also gone, leaving both corners without their familiar roadside eye-catching landmarks. 08-26
Torch Lite Lodge
Yuma, AZ Photo courtesy Bill Herzog
The Torch Lite Lodge is another vintage motel survivor along Yuma’s South 4th Avenue. Its old roadside marquee still points travelers toward the property, while the “Bubba’s” sign in the background adds a little extra local flavor to the scene. 12-06
Grab a hearty meal at Bubba's then spend then night at the Torch Lite. How does that rate?
South 4th Avenue was once Yuma’s main motel strip, lined with independent motor courts waiting for travelers arriving from California or continuing east across the Arizona desert. Swimming pools, air conditioning, and large roadside signs were all important attractions in a town where summer temperatures could easily climb into the triple digits.
The Torch Lite stands out for its sharp A-frame office, a popular mid-century design used to catch the attention of passing motorists during the 1950s and 1960s. Combined with the roadside marquee, the steep roof gave the property considerably more personality than an ordinary row of motel rooms.
Torch Lite Lodge
Yuma, AZ Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
The rooms were arranged around an interior courtyard with a year-round swimming pool, allowing guests to park nearby and quickly cool off after a long desert drive. Barbecue facilities and a guest laundry made the motel useful for both overnight visitors and travelers staying a little longer.
The A-frame stands out at this Yuma roadside motel
For a time, the property was advertised as Bubba’s Torch Lite Lodge. The added name was part of the same motel rather than a separate business, giving the longtime Torch Lite identity a more personal and slightly quirky touch.
Torch Lite Lodge
Yuma, AZ Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
UPDATE: Here are more photos of the Torch Lite Lodge in Yuma, Arizona. This old roadside motel with the A-frame architecture still stands and is still in business along S. 4th Avenue. 11-20
UPDATE: The Torch Lite Lodge remains open as a 39-room budget motel. Its A-frame office, courtyard pool, and roadside marquee survive along 4th Avenue, although it is uncertain whether the old neon still lights after dark. 08-26
Moonlight Motel (Rem.)
Coolidge, AZ Photo courtesy Gorb70
The Moonlight Motel has one of the more puzzling roadside signs in Coolidge. A large crown sits above the motel name, although what royalty has to do with moonlight is anyone’s guess. Somehow, it still works. 03-06
The crown provides a clue to the motel’s earlier identity. The property appears to have once operated as an Imperial Motel, and the royal decoration was left behind when the sign was changed to advertise the Moonlight. Rather than replacing the entire heavy metal pylon, a new plastic panel was simply fitted into the old frame.
Built in 1952, the little 12-room motor court stands along Arizona Boulevard and State Route 87. This road once carried travelers between Phoenix, Tucson, and Casa Grande Ruins National Monument before the interstate highways redirected much of the traffic.
The Moonlight continues to use its original low-rise motel layout, with rooms facing the parking area. Although the neon and original lettering disappeared during the name change, the old crown gives the modern sign a welcome bit of mid-century roadside character.
UPDATE: The Moonlight Motel remains open as a small budget and extended-stay property. The crown top to the sign is also gone and has been for a couple of decades. 08-26
Tropicana Motel (Closed)
Yuma, AZ Postcard courtesy Bill Herzog
Opened in 1958, the Tropicana offered the roadside comforts travelers expected during the period, including kitchenettes, color television, low rates, and a swimming pool. The tropical name and neon palm tree probably looked especially inviting after a long drive through the desert.
The old motel marquee had featured neon at one time not to mention low rates, kitchenettes and a working pool.
Tropicana Motel (Closed) - 1999
Yuma, AZ Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
The motel was part of the busy 4th Avenue lodging strip, where independent motor courts competed for travelers with colorful signs and promises of refrigerated air. Although the Tropicana’s buildings were fairly simple, that big palm-tree marquee gave the place plenty of roadside presence.
UPDATE: The Tropicana Motel is closed and no longer rents rooms. Its roadside sign structure survives, but the neon palm tree and other tubing were removed and the colorful sign face repainted. The current use of the former motel rooms is uncertain. 08-26
UPDATE: The Tropicana Motel is also along S. 4th Avenue in Yuma, Arizona. The motel is now permanently closed. Word is the motel opened its doors back in 1958 as a popular roadside motel on Yuma's main drag. 11-20
Mayflower Motel (Gone)
Mayflower Motel
Moonlight Motel (Rem.)
