Jay Bird Springs has been a well-known recreation area since about 1907, when one of Georgia’s first public swimming pools was built utilizing the waters of a natural spring emanating in the adjacent Gum Swamp (Little Ocmulgee River). The water is thought to have healing qualities and has had thousands of devotees over the past century. It was so famous that it was delivered to homes and businesses throughout the region in the earliest years of the operation. The miniature golf course seen above and the motel and welcome center are all I was able to photograph, as the facility is now a spiritually-based rehabilitation center and the residents were conducting Sunday services near the pool area. Even though the gentleman I spoke to said I could take a few quick shots, I respectfully declined to take any more than what I could get from the road. I do hope to get back at some time and get a few more shots.
Built to lure travelers off busy US Highway 82 (likely in the 1940s), Toby Powell’s Motel & Grill is still relatively intact. The eclectic architecture of the office/restaurant at first appears to be a crumbling facade, but it was built that way! For a time after the motel closed, it served as a grocery store and Virginia’s Beauty Lounge.
Below is a contemporary postcard view from the 1950s.
Common on all of America’s major highways from the 1930s to the 1960s, “tourist cabins” like these were the forerunners of motels and have largely disappeared from the American landscape today.
These are quite well-preserved and likely among the best examples remaining on the coast.
The structures seen above are still standing and largely unchanged in appearance, but it’s been many years since they served the purpose indicated here. The sign on the Cafe reads: Specializing in KC Steaks, Chops, Seafood, Frog Legs & Channel Catfish Dinners, while the back of the card notes the presence of a swimming pool, bowling, fishing, a mineral well 673 feet in depth and a Camellia & Azalea nursery.
Today, they’re used as a school for a nearby Christian community.
Built in the 1940s, this was originally known as Van Gundy’s Motor Court (sometimes called the Pink Motel). It was owned and operated by Violet Van Gundy and her brother Jack. Mrs. Van Gundy, who died in 2010, played “Baby Violet” on some of the Our Gang (Little Rascals) shows. According to comments, their mother Virginia, also lived with them and there was another sibling, Mildred. The pool which everyone so fondly recalls has been filled in, but otherwise the property remains largely unchanged.
Carlton McDonald writes: I lived seven years with Vi and Jack, managed the motel. We would go out to eat just about every night as Vi loved to eat. Vi was the most tantalizing person I’ve ever known, her smile would light up any room. She was a very Christian lady, always helping someone-I was very fortunate to have known her.
Tim Cooper: I often went swimming there and got to know Vi and her brother well.. Very nice people. She told me about living in Hollywood and how it wasn’t the same now as it was back then.. it was peaceful there and I always enjoyed the music.
Steve: Swam there often in the summer and often would cover the office checking in guests so they could go out and eat! They always were “snappy” dressers and always happy.
Kimberley Stewart: As a teenager, I would also watch over the office while they ate, ran errands, in return they let me use the pool. broke my heart when pool was filled in. Great memories.
Sharlene: We lived there in 1981 for a week while our pipes were being fixed. They were both very nice people. I was a waitress in my early 20’s and late teens, they always came into the Golden Coral, sat at the same place. Always smiling and friendly. I loved to chat with them. The motel is now apartments. Great memories.
In 2019, there were plans to demolish the property to make way for apartments but that plan fell through when citizens opposed the zoning request.
In 2019, the Pink Motel was transformed into the Kentucky Star Motel and used as a set location for the film, The Tiger Rising. It was released to generally lackluster reviews and earnings in 2022. The production was also plagued with charges of crew not being paid during or after filming.
Tifton Residential Historic District, National Register of Historic Places
