[Pat Healey]

I know this topic is stupid but I dont care. Maybe someone from the Jennings/Jasper, Florida Area or the Valdosta, Georgia Area can answer this. There used to be a Holiday Inn located in Jennings, Fl at I-75/State Road 143 on the right hand side if you were headed north on I-75. The hotel had a golf course, tennis courts, ect. I had a lot of good memories there growing up with my family. Last time I was through there was June, 1999 and it was rebranded as a Quality Inn. I stayed the night there and it was totally refurbished. A trucker friend of mine told me he thinks its used for migrant housing now but he is not sure. Can anyone confirm this?

Sorry for the weird thread! Thanks!

-Pat Healey

[ferret111]

Believe it or not, I'm planning a day trip to the Hamilton County area. If nobody can provide information by the time I go, I'll see if I can check it out for you.

[kyle19125]

Not that weird of a thread! I remember staying at that Holiday Inn frequently as a child in the early 1970s while driving to/from South Florida for vacations out of state. For whatever reason the mileage and time of day seemed to work out for stopping there. I have a lot of good memories staying at Holiday Inns back then, they always seemed so oasis-like after a long day of driving. Must have been the lit-up funky green sign and the pool!

[Pat Healey]

Believe it or not, I'm planning a day trip to the Hamilton County area. If nobody can provide information by the time I go, I'll see if I can check it out for you.

Thanks ferret111! I appreciate that. How large is Hamilton County? I've only been through it on I-75.

Not that weird of a thread! I remember staying at that Holiday Inn frequently as a child in the early 1970s while driving to/from South Florida for vacations out of state. For whatever reason the mileage and time of day seemed to work out for stopping there. I have a lot of good memories staying at Holiday Inns back then, they always seemed so oasis-like after a long day of driving. Must have been the lit-up funky green sign and the pool!

Thanks for the reply! I'm glad I'm not the only one who has stayed there. It worked out for mileage and time with us to. We lived in South Central Florida and always went to Chattanooga, Tennessee. My dad would get off work around 6:00 PM and we would drive 4-5 hours before he would get tired. That would put us around 11:00 PM. We would stay the night, then finish up the drive to Tennessee. I remember swimming in the pool, walking on the golf course with my dad, playing on the playground when I was young, ect. It will be a shame if they let it go.

I agree with you that Holiday Inn's were oasis like back then. We would sometimes stop and stay at them in other places in Georgia along I-75. All of them were 2 story exterior corridor hotels with a lush pool setting and usually had a Waffle House next door.

-Pat Healey

[kyle19125]

Originally Posted by Pat Healey

Thanks ferret111! I appreciate that. How large is Hamilton County? I've only been through it on I-75.



Thanks for the reply! I'm glad I'm not the only one who has stayed there. It worked out for mileage and time with us to. We lived in South Central Florida and always went to Chattanooga, Tennessee. My dad would get off work around 6:00 PM and we would drive 4-5 hours before he would get tired. That would put us around 11:00 PM. We would stay the night, then finish up the drive to Tennessee. I remember swimming in the pool, walking on the golf course with my dad, playing on the playground when I was young, ect. It will be a shame if they let it go.

I agree with you that Holiday Inn's were oasis like back then. We would sometimes stop and stay at them in other places in Georgia along I-75. All of them were 2 story exterior corridor hotels with a lush pool setting and usually had a Waffle House next door.

-Pat Healey

Thought you'd appreciate seeing this, it's not the Jennings Holiday Inn but it's an example of 1960s-1970s Holiday Inns..

http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:A...Y7PR4l8zWQcEs=

[Pat Healey]

Thought you'd appreciate seeing this, it's not the Jennings Holiday Inn but it's an example of 1960s-1970s Holiday Inns..

Thanks for the link! I love that classic Holiday Inn sign. Unfortunately, I was a product of the 80's and never saw the retro sign in person. The design/pool area brings back memories! I wonder why they don't bring back the sign?

-Pat Healey

[ferret111]

There's not much in Hamilton aside from jai-alai. I think it's the poorest county in the state. I've just never explored the Valdosta-Jasper-Jennings area.

[SharpestJim]

I did a search on the Jennings Holiday Inn and came up with this thread. I, also, have memories of this place, but not from staying overnight there. I'm pretty sure that we never did. However, this Holiday Inn had a cafeteria-style restaurant back in the day and my dad loved to stop there to eat on trips from Ohio to visit my grandparents in Venice, FL. Especially since it was the first exit southbound in Florida. Sort of a psychological thing, probably. We moved to Venice in 1968 and I know that it was there prior to that. I searched the Hamilton County Property Appraiser's web site hoping to find out when it was built. But the "year built" is not indicated. I am pretty sure that that stretch of I-75 opened in 1963 (I don't ever remember 75 north of Wildwood not being there). So my guess is that the Holiday Inn opened in 1964-66.

The OP, Pat, is right - it became a Quality Inn after losing the HI brand. After Quality, it became some other off-brand. Then just "Budget Lodge". It has declined steadily in appearance ever since. I travel I-75 several times a year between Atlanta and my current home in Alachua, FL. The place is still there (or it was as of June 2021) but I'm pretty sure that it is pretty much migrant housing as Pat mentioned. It looks like a rathole. Quite different from its heyday in the mid-to-late-60s.

[kyle19125]

Originally Posted by SharpestJim

I did a search on the Jennings Holiday Inn and came up with this thread. I, also, have memories of this place, but not from staying overnight there. I'm pretty sure that we never did. However, this Holiday Inn had a cafeteria-style restaurant back in the day and my dad loved to stop there to eat on trips from Ohio to visit my grandparents in Venice, FL. Especially since it was the first exit southbound in Florida. Sort of a psychological thing, probably. We moved to Venice in 1968 and I know that it was there prior to that. I searched the Hamilton County Property Appraiser's web site hoping to find out when it was built. But the "year built" is not indicated. I am pretty sure that that stretch of I-75 opened in 1963 (I don't ever remember 75 north of Wildwood not being there). So my guess is that the Holiday Inn opened in 1964-66.

The OP, Pat, is right - it became a Quality Inn after losing the HI brand. After Quality, it became some other off-brand. Then just "Budget Lodge". It has declined steadily in appearance ever since. I travel I-75 several times a year between Atlanta and my current home in Alachua, FL. The place is still there (or it was as of June 2021) but I'm pretty sure that it is pretty much migrant housing as Pat mentioned. It looks like a rathole. Quite different from its heyday in the mid-to-late-60s.

It's the same place and can tell by the style of construction it was an old motel. This is the closest "streetview" gets to the place but provides an idea. https://www.google.com/maps/place/18...5!4d-83.117859 What's left of the businesses out front aren't a promising sign. Definitely sad...I get the impression that area of FL has been hit hard by the opioid crisis. ***Here's a vintage postcard I saw advertised for sale for collectors. A snippet of an idea of how it used to be. https://www.amazon.com/Holiday-Jenni.../dp/B00OYKO01M

[Adrenalize]

I can’t believe this topic is on here, small world. I stayed there at least three times when I was a kid while we drove up North. Like the OP said, the hotel had a golf course, pool, small playground and tennis courts. A guy I used to do business with lives in Jasper and frequently visited the hotel back when it was still a Holiday Inn. Him and his family would go to the restaurant sometimes on Sundays after church.

Mr. Pat, it was definitely a nice joint during the Holiday Inn/Quality Inn days. I think it later was rebranded as “Budget Lodge Motel” or something similar. I almost stayed there about 12 years ago when I was hauling a load to Georgia. I called them to see if they had a truck parking area and asked them if they used to be the Holiday/Quality Inn.

If I remember correctly, I think I saw it for sale online sometime within the last 10 years. The place didn’t look so hot. Paint was fading from the exterior walls, milk crates and nasty BBQ grills on the front porches.

If I ever drive through there, I will take some photos and post them here.