COLLECTION #196: Vintage Motel & Restaurant Postcards

Kittie Lee Hotel, Bishop, CA

I think I'll have to stop saying I don't collect postcards anymore, because I finally went out and bought an album to put them in. It's about 1/2 full, so that implies, 1. That I have half an album full of postcards, and 2. that somehow I plan on filling the book the rest of the way up.

Cafeterias were always a popular restaurant style. This one was in Bakersfield, CA

The Nevada Club was located in State Line, Lake Tahoe, NV

These fun and funky old postcards are from the 50s and 60s, and are mostly from obscure locations in California and Nevada. They are from the estate of my late Mother-in-Law, and probably belonged to her parents, who lived in the Sacramento area for many years.

Roger Maris examines his 61st homerun ball, which was presented to him by Sam Gordon, who paid $5000 for it in 1961, from the young man who caught it at the game. Sam's Original Ranch Wagon Restaurant was in Sacramento, CA

The one of Roger Maris might seen not to belong in this category, but that would be wrong. This postcard is from Sam's Restaurant in Sacramento. You can read the interesting story here: Roger Maris postcard.  It's unfortunate that my in-laws didn't bother to get Roger Maris' autograph. If they had, I could have sold this little gem for hundreds of dollars, instead of sticking it in my little postcard album. But it's cool anyway.

The Clos-In Motel in Reno, NV

A generic Howard-Johnson's card from the 1950s. Howard Johonsons was once a huge chain of motels and coffee shops across the US, designed for middle class travelers.

The Nixon's Restaurant in Whittier, CA was owned by Donald Nixon, President Richard Nixon's brother. You can read more about his misadventures here.

I love this postcard from the Tick Tock Restaurant in Toluca Lake, CA, in the San Fernando Valley.