Hi-Hat


Known Name(s)

Hi-Hat Inn; Hi-Hat Club

Address

White Horse Pike; Gloucester and White Horse Pikes Lawnside, NJ 08045 (Primary) (1938, 1939, 1940, 1941, 1946, 1947, 1948, 1949, 1950, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1966)
131 White Horse Pike; 16 White Horse Pike Lawnside, NJ 08045 (Modern Address)

Establishment Type(s)

Hotel, Inn, Café, Tavern, Night Club

Physical Status

Demolished

Detailed History

There were two “Hi-Hats” advertised under Lawnside in the Green Book between 1938-1967. The first, officially named the Hi-Hat Inn,  also referred to as Hi-Hat Club and Hi-Hat Hotel, was located at 131 White Horse Pike. The Hi-Hat Inn was managed by William Willis, who from 1936-1948 owned the business name but leased the building.[i]  The second, called the Hi-Hat Club, was located at 16 White Horse Pike. The same William Willis owned that establishment from 1949-1957, then he sold it to Franire, Inc., who owned it from 1957-1969.[ii]

Why Willis and Franire never revised their Green Book ad is cause for speculation.  Perhaps it had to do with the proximity of the establishments. Both were within a short distance of each other on opposite sides of the Pike. If patrons stopped at the former location – which was operating as the Inman Hotel by 1952 – they could simply be directed across the street to the Hi-Hat Club, which also had signage.[iii] The Hi-Hat and the Inman Hotel were the only Lawnside businesses listed in the Green Book’s final edition (1966-1967).[iv]

David Dion, et al, bought the Hi-Hat property and liquor license from Franire, Inc., in 1969.[v] Under Dion’s ownership, the original structure was removed, and the lot was subdivided to make way for a newly built Hi-Hat and a Jack in the Box.[vi] Dion sold the Hi-Hat to Lauretta Adams in 1973. Adams briefly renamed it “Lauretta’s Hi-Hat Supper Club” before selling it to Levi Palmer that same year. After Palmer death in 1976, the club went to his mother.  In September 1988, the club’s furniture and equipment was be auctioned for sale.[vii]

 The structure once known as the Hi-Hat Supper Club still stands at 20 White Horse Pike, but it is not an entertainment venue.  A Popeyes franchise replaced the site of the former Jack in the Box.[viii]



[i]. “Legal Notices,” Courier Post, March 20, 1982, p. 29; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com : accessed 11/21/2022), identifies former Inman Hotel address as 131 White Horse Pike; “Hi-Hat Club Opens Thurs.,” Philadelphia Inquirer (1912-), 20 June 1936, p. 14; digital image, ProQuest Historical Newspapers (https://www.proquest.com/news : 4/12/2024); Club opening at site of former Lawnside Inn, which was the site of the former Eureka Sanitarium; Camden County, New Jersey. Deed Book 1405, p. 261-263, John Moody and Beatrice Moody, 16 September 1948; Camden County Clerk’s Office, Camden City; instrument confirms appointment of William A. Willis as manager of Hi-Hat property.  

[ii].“Notice of Application,” Courier Post, 20 June 1958, p. 11; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com ; accessed 1/6/2024); Plenary Retail Consumption License application for Hi-Hat Club, 20 White Horse Pike, Lawnside, New Jersey; Camden County, New Jersey. Deed Book 1405, p. 261-263, John Moody and Beatrice Moody to William A. Willis, 16 September 1948; Camden County Clerk’s Office, Camden City; Camden County, New Jersey. Deed Book 1580, p. 13 &c, Panell to Willis, 6 May 1949; Camden County Clerk’s Office, Camden City; Camden County, New Jersey. Deed Book 3117, p. 432-435, Franire, Inc., to David Dion, Lewis Dion, and Ellis R. Segal, 26 June 1969; Camden County Clerk’s Office, Camden City.

[iii]. Hi-Hat Club photograph, undated; privately held by Mrs. Ellen Benson, [ADDRESS FOR PRIVATE USE,] Lawnside, New Jersey.   

 [iv].   Victor H. Green, Travelers’ Green Book, 1966-67 International Edition, (New York: Victor H. Green Co., 1966-67), p. 38; “Digital Collections,” New York Public Library ( https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/27516920-8308-0132-5063-58d385a7bbd0#/?uuid=2bc70410-8308-0132-4aba-58d385a7bbd0 ; accessed 9/20/2024).

[v]. Camden County, New Jersey. Deed Book 3114, p. 489, Borough of Lawnside to David Dion, 1 May 1969; Camden County Clerk’s Office, Camden City; Camden County, N. J., Deed Book  3117: 432-435; “Notice of Application,” Courier Post, 22 May 1969, p. 48; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com ; accessed 1/6/2024).  

[vi]. “Masco Young On the Town,” Philadelphia Inquirer, 2 March 1971; p. 10; digital image,  Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com ; accessed 11/25/2023); Camden County, New Jersey. Deed Book 3228, page 1181, Foodmaker, Inc., to David Dion, et al, 13 May 1971; Camden County Clerk’s Office, Camden City; [Jack in the Box Ad] “Cashier,” Courier Post, 5 March 1971, p. 41; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com ; accessed 11/25/2023).

[vii]. Camden County, New Jersey. Deed Book 3272, pages 1079-1083, David Dion, et al to Lauretta Adams, 16 February 1973; Camden County Clerk’s Office, Camden City; Camden County, New Jersey. Mortgage Book 2407: p.283, Hi-Hat Supper Club, Inc., to Freda Robinson-Allen, 5 May 1978; Camden County Clerk’s Office, Camden City; “Trustee Sale in Bankruptcy . . .,” Courier Post, 4 September 1988, p. 116; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com ; accessed 10/27/2022).

[viii].  Aerial photo of former Hi-Hat Club lot, undated; digital image, LoopNet.com (https://www.loopnet.com/Listing/18982806/20-White-Horse-Pike-Lawnside-NJ/ ; accessed 7/3/2024).

 

 

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