Ahhhh, the motel, a true pillar of every great American road trip. Who could forget those burning neon signs with the electricity half out, itchy sheets, loud ice machines, and free color TV offers? Really, where would our society be without them?
But where did the motel concept come from? What brilliant mind conjured up the idea to create a happy place for truckers, road warriors, serial killers and drifters to all mingle? These are the hard hitting questions I've asked my whole life.
Well, look no further than the Motel Inn in good ol' San Luois Obispo, the OG of all motels.
That's right, this is the actual sight of the first motel EVER, on this planet. That means all of you Econo Lodges, Best Westerns and Budget Inns have finally figured out who your dad really is.
There's not too much to actually see on sight— a dilapidated bell tower, ruins of the original building and a chain link fence to keep people away— but I encourage creatures of the road to stop by and pay homage to one of man's greatest achievements.
This is where it all started folks— in the charred hills of the Central Valley,— so stop by, soak it up and remember there's a danish and coffee continental breakfast in the lobby, starting at 8am.
HOW THE HELL DID THIS HAPPEN?
With the emergence of automobiles in the early 20th century, many car owners began venturing outside of their respective cities. Poor roads and the shitty vehicle design of the time made road travel a long and frustrating experience, especially for the popular 400 miler between San Francisco and Los Angeles.
The SF/LA trip would take weary travels over 2 days, leaving drivers scrambling for camping or overnight parking if prior engagements hadn't been made. Since driving the route required only one night of accommodation, the idea of the Motel was conceived, which combined camping convenience with hotel comforts.
Arthur S. Heinemann, who’d later be credited as the "inventor of the motel" would take this concept and create the first motel in San Luis Obispo, due to it being the midpoint between SF and LA. Heinemann sought aesthetic inspiration from the Spanish missions all over California, named it the 'Milestone Mo-Tel' and the rest is history.
Opening in 1925, the motel cost $80k to build and would originally charge costumers $1.25 per night, per room. You can’t find that kind of deal on Kayak anymore.
At first, the motel business model proved to be a successful one, but poor Arthur couldn't trademark the name. This opened up the floodgates for competitors to take the idea and run with it. By the time the great depression hit, competition was fierce and Heinemann was unable to franchise his idea, leaving the Milestone Mo-Tel to rot in the dust of its competitors.
As time went on, this property would eventually go into foreclosure, and later be renamed the Motel Inn. After that bit the dust in 1991, the building shuttered its lodging operations and is now used as an admin building for an apple farm next door.
