Abandoned motels- the main reason we made the trip to Allendale. Even though I didn’t really know what to expect when we got to Allendale, I did know there would be a ton of motels that were left abandoned.

We picked a few motels to stop and take pictures at. As much as I would have liked to take pictures at every motel, it would have taken us at least a week to stop and get out at every single one. I counted probably twenty or more motels that were no longer in use (okay- lets be honest- I didn’t count anything…because… you know… math… I hate math…).

Most of the motels were built before the interstate system was put in place. The interstate system gave travelers a straight shot, and took a lot of visitors away from small towns like Allendale. Without other reasons to attract tourists, the many motels built to accommodate travelers went into disrepair and soon closed down.

After the interstate system was put in place the population slowly started to decline, as people left to find job opportunities other places. Sadly, this happened in many other places, and put a lot of people out of work. The interstates that we don’t think twice about today were both a blessing and a curse.

I wish that I had history on each of the motels that we stopped at. Unfortunately, I didn’t know the names of most of the hotels… and didn’t find much history on the ones that I did. If you have any information feel free to share it with us! We would love to know!

-B