tourist court

noun

1. Older Use. motel.

Word History and Origins

Origin of tourist court¹

First recorded in 1915–20

Example Sentences

In Dallas, after F. G. Maloney complained to the law that he and his wife had been robbed of several thousand dollars in a tourist court, police learned that Maloney, alias Curly Malone, had gotten the cash in a New Orleans holdup.

From Time Magazine Archive

The motor court business was officially launched in 1913, according to the Tourist Court Journal, when a Douglas, Ariz, operator prettied up six tiny mining cottages, rented them out to passing tourists.

From Time Magazine Archive