Idle Hour Inn added to railroad-era Rehoboth miniature village
With a model of the Idle Hour Inn added to the 1910 Rehoboth Avenue miniature village diorama, Paul Lovett has completed the build-out of the third block from the ocean.
Built around 1930, the Idle Hour Inn was initially operated as a boarding house and gas station. In the early 1940s, it served as the first- and second-grade schoolhouse for Rehoboth. Folks who were in Rehoboth in the 1950s and well beyond will remember the building as the Thunderbird Shop.Today it is the location of Coastal Hobo Store.
In her book, The Story of Old Rehoboth, Ann Lynch Dyer described the Idle Hour Inn. “The building was built by Mr. William Walsh Jr. Around 1944 it was converted into a youth center. A great place for teenagers, it provided table tennis, a game room, a small reading room, a fountain, and, best of all, a juke box and dancing.”
Some people living today remember enjoying a seemingly normal day at that youth center as teenagers, they suddenly heard car horns honking and sirens blaring. They walked outside to hear the announcement that the Germans had surrendered, marking the end of World War II.
The model of the Idle Hour Inn is sponsored by Lynn Wilson, longtime Rehoboth resident and Rehoboth Beach Historical Society vice chair.
The diorama is a multi-year project to replicate Rehoboth Avenue during its railroad era, which lasted 85 years. The miniature village is on display in the Rehoboth Beach Main Street office building next to the Rehoboth Beach Museum. To learn about the project, go to goldenageofrehoboth.com.
By appointment, Lovett hosts informal gatherings with the diorama at 9:30 a.m., Mondays, with each meeting focusing on a unique aspect of Rehoboth history. All are welcome to bring coffee and join the conversation. To reserve a space, contact Paul Lovett at paul@pdlovett.com or call 302-893-9391.
