Revisiting uniquely Logan Martin lodging
Story by Roxann Edsall
Photos by Mackenzie Free
Contributed photos
Soon after the impounding of the Coosa River in 1964, the sparkling waters of the newly formed Logan Martin Lake started drawing in visitors from around the state and beyond. Fishermen and families looking for a respite from the rigors of the work-a-day world came in droves to enjoy some form of recreation along the water’s edge.
A young entrepreneur from Pell City recognized a need in this new lake community and set a plan in action to fill that need. Charles Abbott was already entrenched in the community as part owner of the local radio station, WFHK, now known as 94.1, The River. He sold his interest in the radio station and, with the help of his uncle, J.D. Abbott, secured a bank loan to build a motel and restaurant in Cropwell on the shores of the lake.
Being a strong family man, Charles thought it only fitting to name the new venture Brothers 4 Motel after his four boys. The sign off Highway 231 featured stacked silhouettes of the four brothers, David, Dennis, Joe Paul and Danny. The family moved into the apartment at the end of the building, and the new motel welcomed its first guest in 1965.
Danny Abbott still has his silhouette from that sign as a memento of the family business he helped operate. A graduate of Pell City High School, Danny remembers the pros and cons of working at the business while being a student.
“My brothers and I worked hard on the grounds and often cleaning the rooms. Dad set up a schedule for each of us to work in the office when we weren’t in school,” Danny recalls. “I saw my buddies having fun at times that I couldn’t. But in those days, if you had a boat, which we did, you had friends. We had a lot of fun on the lake.” And so did their guests.
“Dad felt like people would come from Birmingham (when the lake opened), and they did,” adds Danny. “We had lawyers and doctors who would come every weekend and request the same room week after week.” The Columbia University rowing team came down one winter to practice. They’d put their sculling shells in and paddle to the dam and back. Danny still has the broken oar they signed and gave to his dad.
Because Charles had the foresight to have the water trenched early on for deeper water access, they were able to build docks and a beach with a swimming area. Sliding glass doors in each room looked out onto the lake and allowed each guest lake access. Several guests would leave their boats docked at Brothers 4 through the summer.
“We also had the band, Question Mark and the Mysterians, as guests one time,” Danny tells. “You remember their one big hit, ‘96 Tears’? Well, Question Mark was known for never taking off his sunglasses. I remember a day at the motel when he forgot to put them on, and his band mate had to remind him.”
When the Alabama International Motor Speedway, later named Talladega Superspeedway, opened in 1969, many more guests came to stay. The motel was filled with press staying to report on the races. Danny remembers several drivers checking in for a stay, including NASCAR legend, Tiny Lund. NASCAR Hall of Famer Buddy Baker was another frequent guest. “Buddy actually completely rebuilt his engine in the parking lot of our motel once,” Danny remembers.
The Brothers 4 Motel was also a leader when it came to telecommunications. “Our motel had the first automated phone system in the county,” says Danny. “The rooms for the motel were connected to that system so that rather than having to go through a telephone operator, we could connect a call directly from the office.”
At meal times, many of the motel guests headed next door to the Big Bull Steakhouse Restaurant. Charles never operated the restaurant he built, but leased it to Bob Mulvehill, who later bought it, along with the motel.
Locals remember the iconic neon sign featuring a charging bull, which stood outside the restaurant for just shy of 50 years. For three years, it was operated as Chilly Williy’s Sports Grill and Bar; then in 2017 it was sold and is now Courtyard Oyster Bar and Grill.
When Charles began building the motel and named it, he didn’t know he and wife, Maxine, were about to become parents again, this time to a little girl. After their daughter, Jennifer, was born, he opened a new business on the property and named it Little Sister’s Laundry.
He’d gotten tired of paying the high prices for laundry services for the motel’s linens, so he opened his own laundry facilities. Ironically, that business soon became so popular with locals and hotel guests that he didn’t have time to do the motel linens and had to send them out again.
The success of that laundry prompted him to buy three others in Eden, Pell City, and Southside.
Cleaning and servicing those laundry facilities on top of their other chores kept the four brothers busy. Jennifer, now Jennifer Martin, remembers going with the boys and helping empty the coins. “They’d set me up on top of the machines, and I’d dump the coins out,” she recalls. “Then I’d go home to roll the coins.”
When she wasn’t rolling coins, Jennifer remembers hanging out with the families who were visiting. “I’d try to join as many picnics as I could,” she laughs. “I loved fishing, and sometimes they’d take me fishing with them. I also remember eating ice out of the ice machines and getting in trouble for that.”
Jennifer also remembers enjoying the winter when the water was drawn down. “I loved to collect those shells at the bottom of the lake. We didn’t get to go to the beach, so I thought they were wonderful.”
Charles Abbott sold the Brothers 4 Motel and Big Bull Steakhouse Restaurant in 1972 to Bob Mulvehill, who operated it as Big Bull Motel. Since then, it has changed hands several times. The building has remained largely unchanged and is now called Lake Front Motel.
After selling the motel, Charles kept busy with his four laundry facilities and a new antique mall he’d opened near Interstate 20. The family was stunned in 1985 when he passed away from a heart attack at 58 years old.
Their mom, Maxine, continued to run her clothing store for a number of years and lived to age 87. Two of the four brothers (Danny and Joe Paul) still live on the lake. Jennifer moved away, but recently returned.
“Perseverance was one of the greatest lessons I learned from my family and the businesses,” says Danny. For him, the lessons learned were priceless. “Watching mom and dad work together was inspirational. They never got away from it, but always worked it out.”
“Dad was a very smart guy,” says Danny. “He was very giving and did a lot for the community without making it known.” Charles Abbott served his community well as a leader and an entrepreneur.
The Brothers 4 Motel served the community well as a home away from home for some of the first visitors to Logan Martin Lake.
