Wagon Wheel Motel, Oxnard, CA

I recall the Wagon Wheel Motel vividly, but only from passing by on the way to Thousand Oaks or Los Angeles from Santa Barbara. The marquee and property was described thusly in the January 13th 2007 LA Times,

Its Western facade and neon sign depicting a whip-cracking wagon driver were a throwback to 1950s-era California. The property was part of a strip of businesses near Highway 1 that were a favorite stop for families, tourists and an occasional movie star on trips to Santa Barbara.

It was also a pretty good telltale for letting Little Richard know how much further he would have to wait until Disneyland (Little Richard was usually asleep on the return drive).

Now it's shuttered, and my first actual visit to the grounds consisted of breaking and entering and if you want a good scare, I would encourage you to hang out in an empty Motel at least once in your life. There are more images at my Flickr site, which will host all the images on this blog until I decide that I want all the hits instead of the nice people at Flickr. Or until my reputation is secure.

ADDENDUM:

While searching for blurbs about the history of the Wagon Wheel, this appeared as the 5th or 6th Google result. So... let's say that the Wagon Wheel has served its purpose.