2016 Conference

[L Verge]

(04-13-2016 04:08 PM)Lincoln Wonk Wrote:  Question about motels during segregation

Laurie or whoever might know:
Someone said on one of the tours it was mentioned that motels in the South were once named to tip off guests which race they welcomed, and hotels with colors in the names, like the Red Palace or the Blue Moon Motel, welcomed people of color. Is that really true?
You learn a lot on Surratt Society tours.

I am the one who said that during my narration of the tour through Charles County. I cannot attest to it being a universal "symbol" throughout the South, but Charles County, Maryland, had a heavy concentration of motels due to the slot machines that controlled the economy in that county until the early 1960s.

I was told at an early age that looking for a color in the name of the motel was the clue as to whether white or colored travelers should register. It would be an interesting topic to pursue -- and certainly more gentile than "Whites Only" signs.