FIRST MOTELS EMERGED IN LATE 20's

BUILDING A GREAT MUSEUM FOR THE SAN FERNANDO VALLEY

Rex Motel on San Fernando Road. Historic postcard - Gift to The Museum of the San Fernando Valley from Gary Fredburg 2014.  (click on image to enlarge it.)

By the time the Rex Motel was built in the 1930s, American travelers had gone from bringing camping tents along on their road trips to staying mobile-hotels. For many families, staying in a new-fangled motel was a luxury experience. Collecting motel postcards became a national fad.