The Roadway Inn History
When one says “roadway inn” we can imagine a kind of an old tavern near a dirt road, with horses and dusty carriages standing in the yard. The light of candles trembles in the windows, and the whole picture looks like an island of warmth and comfort in a cold night…
According to the history, the notion of a roadway inn appeared a very long time ago in the ancient world. Such establishments could be found anywhere, wherever there was active traveling, mostly connected with trading. Probably the first inns emerged in Ancient Asia, along the caravan routes. They were called caravansaries. The first roadway inn in Europe was to be found even more than two thousand years ago, in the times of the Roman Empire. It was connected with the movement of Romans. They began building their roads in order to facilitate the trade of goods and enable their armies to move faster. The destination of every roadway inn was to be the place where the travelers could have night lodging or just some rest and replenish their food supplies. Besides, they were intended to be the places of people gathering.
The main difference between the notions of roadway inn and roadway tavern is that the latter didn’t provide night lodging for the travelers. Both of them also served as drinking houses and a place to have some hot meal.
Years and years later the Roman Empire stopped its existence, but the notion of roadway inn remained. In the early medieval period travelers mostly were to find accommodations in monasteries. But then, in the late Middle Ages, when the Crusades and the active revival of commerce took place, these establishments resumed their development. Every roadway inn provided such services as night lodging for the travelers, stabling and fodder for their horses, probably fresh horses by request, as well as some entertainment. Medieval roadway inns were, along with the taverns, the places of recreation of the travelers and villagers.
In contemporary Europe there are a lot of establishments called inns, and some of them are even several centuries old. However, the majority of them are situated in big cities, such as London, Dublin, Madrid, Paris etc. The reason of such a location is that it allowed these places survive through all the dramatic events of European history and some natural disasters.
In North America, especially in the USA, the notion of a roadway inn became more significant in the period of the conquest of the Wild West. And later on it had been representing the romantic atmosphere of adventures. Old American inns were called saloons and served such customers as cowboys, soldiers, hunters, miners and gold prospectors. This aspect of the roadway inn history is widely revealed in the films of a western genre. Alcohol serving, eating and drinking together with gambling and shooting are the most common background of such movies.
At present some motels or hotels still possess the name of a roadway inn. But very few of such establishments can really boast of maintenance of such a romantic atmosphere along with modern comfort.
