National Register Listing

De Anza Motor Lodge

4301 Central Ave. NE, Albuquerque, NM

The De Anza Motor Lodge is significant because it is one of the best remaining examples of a pre-World War II tourist court that was then expanded during the decade following the war to meet the increased demand for tourist facilities along Route 66.

The De Anza Motor Lodge is one of the best remaining examples in New Mexico of a pre-world War II tourist court that was then expanded during the decade following the war to meet the increased demand for tourist facilities along Route 66. Constructed in early 1939, less than two years after Route 66 had been realigned along Central Avenue in Albuquerque, the lodge was built by S.D. Hambaugh, a tourist court operator from Tucson, and C.G. Wallace, a prominent trader at Zuni. Representing one of several ventures that Wallace undertook along Route 66, the lodge became linked to Wallace’s name and his reputation as an Indian trader.Thus, it assumed a special role among tourist courts along the highway, offering not only lodging and, later,food but Indian jewelry and crafts and repair services as well. Larger than most tourist courts of its time, the De Anza was altered and expanded during the golden age of tourism along Route 66 to conform to Wallace’s sense of the changing norms for tourist facilities. While some of details of the buildings’ original Spanish-Pueblo Revival Style were lost, it remains one of the best examples of how pre-war motels were altered to remain economically viable during the 1950s. During those years, the motel continued to be closely associated with Wallace and his business, serving as a gathering place for traders and craftsmen, as well as tourists collecting Southwestern Indian crafts and jewelry. Because of its close association with automobile tourism along Route66 and with its longtime operator, C.G. Wallace, the property qualifies under Criteria A, B, and C at the local level of significance. The motel is the only known extant property associated with Wallace in the Southwest,and is, therefore, the resource that most closely reflects his productive years as an Indian trader and Route 66entrepreneur. Changes to the motel, in the form of upgrades and additions completed in 1957, extend the period of significance to less than 50 years. The 1950s upgrades are important as they represent Wallace’s attempt to modernize the motel for a new breed of Route 66 tourist. As a whole, they do not detract, but rather add to the significance of the property.

Local significance of the building:
Listed in National Register of Historic Places in 2004.