Shamrock Court motel in Sullivan designated to the National Register of Historic Places

The Shamrock Court along Route 66 in Sullivan, Missouri, recently was designated to the National Register of Historic Places.

The designation for the motel, listed as being 1246 South Service Road (aka Route 66) in Sullivan, was official on March 28, according to a weekly email from the National Park Service that lists new National Register properties.

The Shamrock Court has been the subject of extensive preservation and renovation efforts by new owner Rich Dinkela, who is the president of the Route 66 Association of Missouri. That included a ceremonial relighting of a re-creation of the motel’s original neon sign and architectural neon on the building.

Dinkela in 2021 also received a $30,000 cost-share grant from the Route 66 Corridor Preservation Program to stabilize the building. The program stated this about the building:

With very few alterations, the motel retains most of its original design and appearance, including native stone construction known as the “giraffe rock” style, which is n unique to the Ozarks region. During its construction, stonemason artisans incorporated sunbursts, flowers and diamond patterns into the stone design, which added a unique, whimsical touch still present today. With its high pitch dormers, shingled roofs, native stone facades, and distinctive horseshoe-shaped configuration, the motel retains a very high degree of historic integrity. 

Last year, he said he wanted to reopen the property sometime in 2023 as a hybrid of a motel and RV park. He also said he submitted paperwork to get the Shamrock Court on the National Register by the first half of 2022.

The distinctive, giraffe-stone motel dates to the late 1940s and previously was owned by the Weiland family for nearly 70 years.

In the late 1970s, the motel was converted into apartments, with living quarters for longtime owners John and Rose Weiland until they died.

(Vintage postcard image of the Shamrock Court in Sullivan, Missouri, courtesy of 66Postcards.com)