Americans on the Road: From Autocamp to Motel, 1910-1945

by Warren Belasco

In Americans on the Road, Warren James Belasco uses travel magazines, trade journals, and diaries to "look at what Americans actually did with their cars rather than try to judge what cars did to Americans." Belasco begins with the earliest days of automobile travel in America--when travelers camped wherever they stopped along the roadside, "gypsying" in their cars or in tents--and moves on to chart the growth in the 1920s of free municipal campsites. As the cost of building and maintaining these campsites steadily rose, towns began requiring patrons to pay a small fee. The steady stream of paying customers prompted entrepreneurs to build inexpensive restaurants and lodgings--and, Belasco concludes, "the motel industry was born."

Genres: Travel, Food

224 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1979

Reviews

[Eric_W · Rating 4 out of 5]

As someone hopelessly smitten by the "wanderlust" virus, I am more than sympathetic to Americans' peripatetic impulses: the "grass is greener" syndrome , if you will. The desire to escape current and mundane responsibilities and see new places is ingrained in the American spirit. The automobile is like crack to a traveler providing freedom and unlimited possibilities.

The car became an escape from modernity, represented by the railroad, and modern industrial society uses sightseeing (the author quotes sociologist Daen MaCannell) to turn artifacts of the industrial revolution "into tourist attractions. . . In Williamsburg, Rockefeller oil money pre3serves colonial candleworks; in New Mexico, government billboards direct motorists to Indian ruins. Such exhibits protect modernity in two ways: by confirming the optimist's belief in progress and the pessimist with the unattainable past."

It's ironic that trains, symbol of modernity, were viewed in many respects the same way we view airplanes today: too fast, no way to stop and stretch one's legs, unnatural, can't see the countryside except in a very limited way, claustrophobic, etc. There was a nostalgia for being closer to nature (you know mosquitoes, ticks, sunburn, sweat, stuff like that.) Motoring in the early 20th century was best with difficulty: flat tires, breakdowns, lousy roads, lots of mud after it rained and often washed out bridges. Hotels along the way often required dress codes and motorists who arrived covered in dust and grime from the way, were looked down on. These difficulties were considered a positive by many. "Ordeal was considered an escape from luxury." and "we grow weary of our luxuries and conveniences," were prevailing justifications for hardship. But as Emily Post said, "ordeal was good for character." (Such bullshit.)

[Andrea · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, what an enthralling little book! Don't be fooled by the bland textbook marketing... what a breezy, interesting read, ideal for anyone road-tripping this summer.

Where to begin? Belasco takes us right back to the turn of the century, when cars were just getting their start. The railroad, once the greatest innovation, was already boring some tourists with its fixed timetables and pre-selected destinations. Rail depot hotels and Victorian-style summer resorts felt outdated and stuffy, so the upper classes rebelled and took to the roadside campsite. For years, the wealthy were the primary "auto gypsies," being the only ones able to afford cars and elaborate camping gear. They repaired roads and cars themselves, and touted the trying experience and fresh air as good for one's health. It hearkened back to a simpler time; before up-to-the-minute technologies like universal time and lightbulbs were ruining the youth of the day.

Eventually land owners and conservationists tired of the inevitable trash and wreckage a roadside campsite left behind, and so was born the free municipal campsite. For a few glorious years in the early 20s, towns put up free sites where campers enjoyed rubbing shoulders with "all sorts" of tourists, swapping road stories, and talking gear around a fire. All the better to bring your wife and kids, who had the unspoken role of carrying domestic responsibilities from home to road, thus doing the cooking and cleaning.
But in the mid-twenties, cars were becoming more affordable and roads were improving. "Getting there" wasn't part of the fun the way it used to be, and the time-honored goal of "making good time" was born. True gypsies, migrant workers, and the lower classes infiltrated the free camps. It turned out that by "all sorts," wealthy autocampers really meant "other middle to upper-class white tourists." Women wanted more convenience at the campsites. Said Mary Reinhart "the difference between men I have camped with and myself has been this: they have called it sport, I have known it as work." Mary, you and I could be friends! Plus few camps provided water safe to drink, and nobody likes to maintain a good privy, leading to the rather alarmingly real possibility of contracting dysentery on your holiday.

Soon the "better" camps set themselves apart by turning private: screening clients, charging fees, and imposing rules and limits. And with fees, of course, came profits and improvements. It wasn't long before bare cabins sprang up, along with filling stations, groceries, and all-night cafes. Flush toilets and hot showers were a must if you expected business at all. After a few years of romanticizing the hardships of camping, people started to realize, as one Harper's author put it, that "we are not a knapsack, open-air people." Wives who were previously tasked with cooking preferred being able to stop at places were the beds were ready and waiting, and hot showers and fried chicken were included in the site fee. Dads liked being able to hit the road without having to take the time to put away a tent. With increased demand the new "cabin camps" sought to out-do one another, constantly trying to stay ahead of the riff-raff and attract wealthy motor tourists with the most up-to-date amenities.

What is so impressive is that this transition happened in a matter of years during the late twenties. Cabin courts were a cheap but high-quality vacation option, and fared well during the Depression. Where the free municipal camp had been so popular in the mid twenties, it was all but taboo by the early 30s. And with the hasty race to have the best cabin court around, it wasn't long before the motel was born. By the 50s of course, they were an American staple.

Get your hands on this book and take it on your summer vacation, especially if going by car! You will never look at a road trip the same way again... the next time a bored or impatient travel companion pipes up, patiently remind them that at least the likelihood of getting dysentery is thankfully low :)

[John E · Rating 3 out of 5]

The history was interesting; the writing was not.

[Stephanie]

This is crammed with fascinating material about how people thought about cars before WWII, especially the opposition between train travel (industrial, impersonal, strapped to a timetable) and cars (free-wheeling, romantic, gypsy-esque, independent, intimate, stopping to smell the roses--a return to the premodern days of stagecoaches). Then, of course, this entirely makeshift pasttime, in which people would drive around and camp in open fields and roadsides, becomes coopted by consumer culture, and we get motel chains. The book describes this process. This was the book Warren Belasco wrote for his dissertation. It displays his joy in archival research (he loves quoting silly things, like odes to the joys of autocamping) and his facility for making conceptual sense of abundant details: finding patterns, assigning terms, venturing generalities.

[Bryan Lindenberger · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really interesting content but repetitive. The author has a way of saying the same thing 3 different ways in an academic style. Some of the quotes he used from writers of the period interested me much more than the author's content. These captured the flavor and sense of adventure of the times and will likely provide me with further reading.

[Kelli · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great for the overall background of the auto travel experience in the 1930s for Driving Dakota.

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

As I have a deep fascination for the history of American society between the years of 1885 and 1930, I found the book interesting.

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent review of the early days of RV/travel trailer/camper travel. Only until 1945 so don't expect to find your little vintage sixties Shasta in there. Lovely images.