US 31W (Dixie Highway) was the main north / south route until Interstate 65 was built in the mid-60’s. This section of the old highway still remains much the same as it was in it's heyday. A lot of the smaller roadside hotels and motels are still maintained.
The Wigwam Village began as a dream of Frank A. Redford in the early 1900s. Frank’s inspirations in this dream were a popular ice cream shop shaped like an upside down cone and authentic teepees he’d seen on a Sioux reservation in South Dakota. His dream became reality in 1935 when construction on Wigwam Village #1 was completed in Horse Cave, Kentucky. Realizing he’d hit upon a popular idea, Frank patented the design with the US patent office in 1936.
Wigwam Village #2 was completed in 1937 in Cave City, and five more were built over time in Alabama, Florida, New Orleans, California, and Arizona. Of the seven original Wigwam Villages, only three remain: #2 in Cave City KY, #6 in Holbrook, Arizona and #7 in California. Wigwam Village #2 is an impressive sight and is truly a monument to one man’s American dream that came true. The main building, made up of 38 tons of concrete and 13 tons of steel, stands 52 feet high. It originally housed a restaurant and gift shop, but with the completion of Interstate 65 in the mid-60s, the restaurant was closed and this main building now houses a gift shop. Smaller wigwams on either side of the gift shop are public restrooms. Each of the remaining 15 buildings are bedrooms, complete with private bathrooms. Furnishings in each of the buildings are original from the 1930's and are made of hickory and cane.
The Wigwam Village is also listed on the Kentucky and National Historical Registers. One of the two remaining Wigwam Villages has a brief shot of fame in a recent music video by The Dave Mathews Band in the song “Where Are You Going”. The Wigwam Hotel on route 66 in Holbrook, Arizona is featured in part of a recent TV Add for Suzuki.
To see the tri-fecta of caches at the three remaining sights see: GC9C9K1, GC6N9X0
Owners of property are aware of the geocache, please park at one of the visitors spots and make a direct route to the cache.
The cache is a Pre Form container.
This cache placed and maintained by a member of Geocky, InKy and the Heartland Geocachers
