COLONIAL MOTEL, Elgin IL
   
 

The Colonial in Elgin. With a Laundromat! Looks about as “colonial” as a Frank Lloyd Wright house, but it doesn’t look particularly Western, either. (One hopes the definition of “Best” wasn’t as elastic as “Western” in that particular chain.)

The car is not being struck by day-lightning; the card has a flaw I cannot remove in Photoshop. Well, I could, but life’s too short. Note the Blue Ox restaurant in the lower left-hand corner - Didn’t know that Paul Bunyan mythology made it that far out of Minnesota. It's now a Puerto Rican cafe.