Walt Whitman Motel
Known Name(s)
Walt Whitman Motel (Primary) Whitman Motor Lodge (Secondary)
Address
295 E. Jericho Tpke Huntington Station, NY
Establishment Type(s)
Hotel
Description
Walt Whitman Motel consists of two buildings. The building facing the street has a second story in the middle section where the office and main lobby are located. This section has stucco siding, quoins on the corners, and modern faux divided light double-hung windows. It has a hipped roof with a cupola. Extending from this main section on either side are one-story wings containing hotel rooms. Across the parking lot is a second one-story building with hotel rooms. The rooms in both buildings can be entered directly from the parking lot. There is a brick walkway along the facade and under the overhanging roofs. The room sections are clad in vinyl siding resembling clapboard. The second building has an overly tall cornice. In the main bulding, the rooms have sliding windows over air units with decorative shutters on the street side. In the second building, the windows are faux divided light, double-hung windows with decorative shutters. Both buildings have asphalt shingle roofs.
Detailed History
The Green Book first mentioned the Walt Whitman Motel in 1963. The same year, the motel owners, Davis and Eileen Glaser, helped in their communities’ mission to fight polio by providing space to store supplies and equipment. Between the 50s and 70s, the motel was victim of robberies and a tragedy of an employee losing her life from a car accident outside the motel in 1969. Even with the tragedies, the motel gained popular publicity for providing rooms for people who were in competitions and a family that lost their home in a fire. Other businesses used the motel as a directional point to aid in customers finding their places. Davis and Eileen Glaser became the new owners of the motel in May 1961 with fourteen years’ experience in the motel business. Anthony Moschetta bought and renovated the motel in 1994. Moschetta bought the motel when the area was rebounding from preceived problems due to welfare cases, drugs, and prostitution. Under new ownership the motel was renamed Walt Whitman Motor Lodge.