Delbert Trew, a Route 66 advocate and rancher in the Texas Panhandle, wrote an article today in the Amarillo Globe-News about how we’ve progressed as a nation in the overnight lodging industry.
An excerpt:
Stalls in sheds were first partitioned off with wagon canvas allowing just enough space to undress and lie on a single straw-tick mattress that rattled every time you moved. Strangers often slept together in larger beds, each with a pistol in his hand for protection. […]
Of course, saloons were always built first. To save on building costs, second and third stories were added providing small rooms for rent. Though many were clean and comfortable, most were just barely livable with dirty bedding, small space and the ever-present bedbugs and lice. Most legs of beds rested in small saucers filled with coal oil to keep the bugs from crawling upward.
The whole thing is worth reading.
Members of the Route 66 yahoogroup had a recent discussion about Wi-Fi in Route 66 motels. Even from just three years ago, it’s amazing how quickly even the smallest mom-and-pops are offering free wireless Internet. In fact, I’m hard-pressed to think of anyplace that doesn’t have it. They’re out there, but disappearing fast.
“Most legs of beds rested in small saucers filled with coal oil to keep the bugs from crawling upward.”
If conditions were THAT bad, I think I’d rather sleep out under the stars!