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Alberta's Hotel: Springfield in the Green Book

Renee Glass
2 days ago
4 min read

The 1950s are often remembered as the golden age of road trips. Route 66 carried travelers from Chicago to Los Angeles through the nation's heartland, where gas stations, motels, and diners became iconic landmarks. For Black Americans, however, traveling the "Mother Road" required careful planning, as many businesses refused to serve patrons of color. As such, Black motorists often packed their own food and supplies for trips, since they could not count on receiving goods and services from roadside stops.


Alberta Ellis stands in front of her hotel. Text on sign is cut off, but what is visible reads "Alberta's Snack Shack."
Alberta Ellis poses outside of her hotel in this undated photograph. From the Show Me Missouri collection. Image courtesy of Special Collections and Archives, Missouri State University.

Nevertheless, some enterprising Black business owners strove to provide these travelers safe and equitable service. One such entrepreneur was Springfield native Alberta Ellis. In the early 1950s, Ellis purchased Springfield's former city hospital at 617 North Benton Street, just a few blocks north of Route 66, and converted it into Alberta's Hotel and Snack Bar. Alberta's Hotel soon became a thriving business, catering to Black travelers from across the country, including celebrities such as Frankie Lymon and the Harlem Globetrotters.


The cover of the 1946 edition of The Negro Motorist Green-book.
The cover of the 1946 edition of The Negro Motorist Green-book. From the Show Me Missouri collection. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress.

The hotel's popularity was bolstered by its inclusion in publications for Black motorists such as The Negro Travelers' Green Book, commonly abbreviated to the Green Book. The Green Book helped Black travelers locate businesses that would serve them safely and with dignity during an era of widespread segregation. Alberta's Hotel received a star in the Green Book, identifying it as a recommended lodging option.


Demand became so strong that Ellis purchased land ten miles west of Springfield, just off of Route 66. The property, which Ellis referred to as "the Farm," was used to grow fresh produce for the hotel and to provide a safe campsite for Black travelers when all of the hotel's rooms were occupied.


The success of Alberta's Hotel reflected a broader need in a segregated Springfield. In 1958, the Springfield Chamber of Commerce's Civic Affairs Committee surveyed local White-owned restaurants, theaters, hotels, and motels, asking whether they catered to Black patrons. The results were striking: 76 of the 116 restaurants surveyed refused service, only two of 22 hotels admitted Black guests, and only three of the city's six theaters allowed Black people to attend performances.


The Chamber's report concluded:


We feel that the findings of the study are shameful for a city which boasts of its many churches and Christian atmosphere... We feel that it is shameful that all human beings, regardless of color, who have the price of a meal, the price of a night's lodging, or the price of a theatre ticket can't go into any place of their choosing and receive the same services and treatment accorded all persons. If we, the members of the Springfield Chamber of Commerce, wish to make our city a truly All-American City, abiding by the spirit and letter of our nation's Constitution, we will not wait until we are required by a decision handed down by the highest court of the land—we will open all of our privately-owned places to all of our nation's public.


When the Civil Rights Act of 1964 banned discrimination in public accommodation, Black travelers gained access to establishments that had once excluded them. While undoubtedly a victory for civil liberties, integration brought bittersweet consequences for Black-owned businesses in previously segregated communities as they saw their customer bases shrink. Such was the case for Alberta's Hotel, which closed its doors in 1965 after having provided safe haven for Black travelers in Springfield for over a decade. Alberta Ellis passed away the following year at the age of 56.


The legacy of Alberta's Hotel and Snack Bar and its tenacious proprietor illustrates both the barriers that Black travelers faced on Route 66 and the determination of individuals who built networks of support despite those obstacles.


Business card for Alberta's Hotel. Text reads: Accomodations for tourists and permanent guests. Convenient, comfortable, reasonable. Phone 6-9924. Alberta's Hotel Snack Bar & Rumpus Room. Alberta Northcutt, Prop. 617 Benton Springfield, Mo.
This business card advertises Alberta's Hotel, owned by Springfieldian Alberta Ellis (here referred to as Alberta Northcutt). From the Show Me Missouri collection. Image courtesy of Special Collections and Archives, Missouri State University.

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Note

This article was originally published April 5, 2019, by Renee Glass. It was republished with revisions on September 17, 2026, by Brandon Broughton.


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