Wigwam Motel, Native American-style tepee lodging along Route 66 in Holbrook, Arizona.
The Wigwam Motel is a Route 66 lodging in Holbrook made of fifteen concrete and steel tipis arranged as a square, with units on three sides and the main office on the fourth, flanked by two smaller tipis. Each tipi is 14 feet (4.3 m) across at the base and 32 feet (9.8 m) tall, with a bathroom behind the main room. The units are numbered 1 to 16, with no 13.
Chester E. Lewis built this motel in 1950 after seeing the Cave City wigwams in 1938. He bought Frank A. Redford's design rights and the "Wigwam Village" name through a royalty deal: coin-operated radios in his units sent every dime to Redford. The motel was part of a chain of seven villages built between 1933 and 1949.
The units are called "wigwams", never rooms or cabins, and are numbered 1 to 16 with no number 13. Chester E. Lewis, who built the motel in 1950, paid Frank Redford for the design through a royalty deal: coin-operated radios in each unit sent Redford every dime inserted for 30 minutes of play. The motel was parodied as the Cozy Cone Motel in the Pixar film Cars.
The motel sits at 811 West Hopi Drive on Route 66, arranged as a square: fifteen wigwams on three sides and the office on the fourth, flanked by two smaller wigwams. Each unit has its own paved pad for one car, so you park beside your wigwam. Units are numbered 1 to 16, with no number 13.
The units are numbered 1 to 16, but there is no number 13. Chester E. Lewis bought the rights to Frank Redford's design through a royalty deal: coin-operated radios were installed in the wigwams, and every dime for 30 minutes of play went to Redford.
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