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Believe it or not, there once was a time when not every city had a national chain hotel, and the locally- or regionally-owned hotels and motels were pretty nice accommodations. Once again, Tullahoma was no different.

In the latter part of the 19^th century, Tullahoma had become a bit of a resort town. Natural springs in the area were said to provide therapeutic value, and with the railroad station then located between Grundy and Lincoln Streets along Atlantic Street, that part of town was a perfect location for hotels. I’ve found information about some beautiful Queen Anne and Victorian hotel building in the first and second blocks of North Atlantic Street, on the east side of the railroad tracks, which was directly opposite the thriving businesses on the west side of the street. Details about opening and closing dates haven’t arisen on most yet, but I’ll relate what I know. If you can fill in some info, please e-mail me and I’ll update. If you have good photos, that’s even better.

The King Hotel was located at the northeast corner of East Lincoln and North Atlantic Streets. It also housed Minor’s Restaurant, which was said to have had pretty tasty fare. According to the 2002 updated version of the book Historic Tullahoma, the King Hotel was demolished in 1971, probably soon after this photo was taken, and it was the last one of the 1880s buildings to fall to the wrecking ball. A modern gasoline service station was erected in its place, and that same building is where the Signarama shop is now.

Just north of the Hotel King was the smaller Harton Hotel. Further north, on the northeast corner of Grundy Street and Atlantic was the Hurricane Hall Hotel. That building was later turned into apartments, but the outside appearance stayed the same. In 1957, the Hurricane Hall building was moved across Grundy Street to make room for a parking lot for other businesses. It never re-opened and was the victim of an arsonist.

Somewhere along the railroad spur line toward Manchester was another place called the Park Hotel. The only photo I’ve seen of that one looks to have been taken late 1800s or very early 1900s. There was also the Tullahoma Inn on Jackson Street. Unfortunately, the photos I’ve seen of all of those, other than the King, have been too small to print. Again, if you have good quality photos of any of these, please contact me.

Moving on to a more modern time, I found the accompanying photo postcard of the Commodore Motor Inn on Highway 41A. Does it look familiar? It should, as it’s now the Quality Inn and the adjacent La Fiesta Mexican restaurant. Sometime along the way, the Mid-Century Googie architectural influences have given way to a less dramatic look, and the style has been erased.

In addition to my News articles, I’m working on a pictorial history book about Tullahoma in the twentieth century, roughly 1920s to 1980s. If you have some sharp, large photos you can share, I’d be honored to see them. I’ll scan them and then immediately return them to you. I’m looking mostly for businesses, industries, and major events. You can contact me at alanmayes@lighttube.net.