Last week I traveled to Pismo Beach for my father's business trip. On our way home, we drove by the Motel Inn in San Luis Obispo, California. My father told me that when he was younger he and his friend would drive down to Pismo Beach and stay at the Motel Inn. His friend's aunt was the owner of the inn at the time.
Looking at the old sign of the motel and ruins of the old buildings got me interested in the background of this motel (read more about the first motel in the world below).
The Motel Inn was the first motel in the world, which opened December 12, 1925 in San Luis Obispo as Milestone Mo-Tel. The architect, Arthur S. Heineman built the Spanish mission style motel. The motel is placed between San Francisco and Los Angeles. It was needed during this time because driving was such a popular way to travel. In the beginning, the hotel looked a lot different; it was originally built to be a luxury motel and had special garages specifically designed for travelers.
According to the San Luis Obispo website, two famous people who stopped here were Marilyn Monroe and Joe Dimaggio; they stopped for lunch on the way home from their honeymoon on Jan. 16, 1954.
When my father and his friend stayed there it was not owned by the original owner and looked different than it did in the 20s and even the 50s. When he stayed there, it was called the Motel Inn. The sign seen in the picture above is left from that time. When he stayed there it had cottage-like rooms for guests.
Sadly this motel was torn down in 2006 and hasn't been rebuilt. There are plans to rebuild the motel to its original purpose. The sign on the only building left says the following,
"This is the site of the world's original and first motel. Construction started in 1925 at a cost of $80,000. The word "Motel" was first thought of here by architect Arthur Heineman. Dedicated October 22, 1988, by Native Sons of the Golden West, Frank Compani, Grand President and San Luis Obispo Parlor No. 290."
According to The Tribune, the new structure is supposed to be rebuilt this Fall, honoring the previous architecture of a Spanish style motel. Hopefully, the new motel will be as beautiful as the original.
Comentários