Cave Springs Motel—Dunsmuir, California

When Clint Brown bought a chunk of land near Dunsmuir, California, in 1922, he began to serve travelers by building a fire circle.

People would come in their cars with all their camping gear. They’d circle up the cars,” says Louie Dewey, owner of Cave Springs Resort, which now occupies the same ground. Brown built a restroom and a shower next, adding cabin in the mid-1920s.

“Clint foresaw that the highway—US Highway 99—would always be routed through growth,” Says Dewey. “He knew that travel by road would one day eclipse travel by rail.”

What first brought auto travelers to Cave Springs continues to draw travelers now—big trees, blue-ribbon fishing, and a bed along the old US Highway 99 travel corridor. And where once Clint Brown offered campers a fire circle, now history is hot, too.