Found this old postcard recently…..

Wigwam Village No 2, Kentucky.

Frank Redford had a dream of a motor lodge comprised of sleep-in teepees like he’d seen on a trip to the Sioux reservation in South Dakota. His first was built in 1935 in Horse Cave, Kentucky. The base of each teepee was 14 feet in diameter, and they were 32 feet tall.

Realizing that he’d created a clever idea, and he certainly did, Redford was quick to patent the teepee structure.

I love the swastika decoration.

Before WW2, it was still considered a native American symbol for the sun, the 4 directions, and the 4 seasons. Don’t see them much anymore. At least, not painted on the side of a motels.

Within a few years, 5 more Wigwam Villages were built in Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, California and Arizona.

Wigwam Village #2 is the only one of the 7 to boast main building large enough to contain a restaurant and a gift shop. The restaurant may have closed in the mid-60’s, but the gift shop is still there. The impressive building is over 52 feet tall and made of 38 tons of concrete and 13 tons of steel. There are smaller restroom teepees on either side.

Of the 7 original Wigwam Villages, only 3 remain operational today:

#2 in Cave City, Kentucky – (Where my postcard is from), #6 in Holbrook, Arizona. and #7 in Rialto, California.

The rooms still have the original hickory furniture from the 30’s. TV, and air conditioning….but sadly, no phones.

Rates are still extremely reasonable, depending on the time of year, or if you want 2 single beds or one double, expect to pay anywhere between $42 and $67 a night.

That seems like a pretty good price.

Let’s add it to the “Bucket List”.