Little America - Green River, Wyoming
Posted by: 
Hikenutty
N 41° 32.616 W 109° 51.429
12T E 595322 N 4599735
Little America sought to be an oasis along I-80 before truck stops were common. They have a hotel, restaurant, post office, convenience store, along with other trucker amenities.
Waymark Code: WM20Y4
Location: Wyoming, United States
Date Posted: 08/17/2007
Views: 60
The following excerpt is from "Wyoming: A Guide to its History, Highways, and People":
In LITTLE AMERICA, a hotel of modern design, with straight lines, rounded corners, and large windows, appears unexpectedly in a vast waste.
One of the places that many kids who pass along I-80 on family road trips remember is Little America. This place was likely one of the nation's first truck stops - its goal to be an oasis in central Wyoming for exhausted travellers.
Opened in 1932 by S.M. Covey, the refueling stop along the Lincoln Highway grew to include numerous gas pumps, a hotel, restaurants and a post office. It was originally built in the streamline style, as the guide notes in the excerpt above, but in the late 1970's was remodelled, stripping it of its character.
Covey named the business Little America after Admiral Byrd's camp on the South Pole. In fact, Covey wanted a live Emperor penquin as a mascot and had one sent from Antarctica. It died on the journey from Antarctica, so they had the bird stuffed and used it anyhow. You can still see the ill-fated bird near the entrance to the restaurant and lounge.
At one time the penguin signs and promises of ice cream for kids and coffee for parents made the place a roadside attraction. Recently, however, the place has tried to appear more upscale and all of the mystery has been taken from it. The signs are now adorned with pictures of pools and large steaks and the poor penguin has been relegated to a dusty back corner.