Marker - First Holiday Inn
Posted by: 
cgeek
N 35° 08.925 W 089° 53.767
16S E 236165 N 3893379
Historical Marker
Waymark Code: WM3K03
Location: Tennessee, United States
Date Posted: 04/13/2008
Views: 33
First Holiday Inn
The world's first Holiday Inn was opened on this site, August 1, 1952 by Memphis entrepreneur Kemmons Wilson as a result of his unsatisfactory lodging experiences on a vacation the prior summer with his wife Dorothy and their five children. He soon joined with builder Wallace E. Johnson to establish a nationwide chain of inns, each marked by a giant green and yellow neon sign topped by a star. By offering family-oriented, predictable convenience and "inexpensive luxury," this single 120-room motel located on the main route into Memphis from the east would evolve into the world's largest hotel-motel system and make Mr. Wilson's life a true rags-to-riches story. The first Holiday Inn was retired by sale in 1973 and finally demolished in 1994.
Marker Name: First Holida Inn
Marker Location: Roadside
Type of Marker: Building
Marker Number: None
Group(s) Responsible for placing Marker:
Shelby County Historical Commission
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