The Atlasta

You wouldn't have found it on any historical registry, it wasn't located in a historical district and it wasn't protected by the Friends of Historic Boonville, but in my opinion they tore down a Boonville landmark this week.

The Atlasta Motel ceases to exist. During high school and my early days of college, my friends and I would rent a room and use it as a home base for our night outs. We had some great parties there. When I moved to Nebraska, and came back to town to visit, I would always stay at the Atlasta. It may not have had many amenities, but it was cheap. And it was home.

The Atlasta sat like a beacon, there on it's prime location next to Interstate 70. How many times did I drive by it and not even think about it? I had lived here for many years before I even realized what it's name stood for...I just always thought of it as the Atlasta. At Last A Motel...get it? And for many years, that is probably what many people thought as they drove that endless stretch of highway. Now the Super 8 and the Comfort Inn catch the travelers befre they reached the Atlasta, but thost motels just don't have the same appeal.

Oh the Atlasta, the stories your walls could tell, if they hadn't torn you down. Except my stories...those are best kept hush, hush. Just between the two of us, okay?