Arago: Hotel Room Key Tokens

Owney received this hotel key check token from a railway hotel most probably located in Tracy, California. There is no information on the token to indicate when he received it. Owney made a number of trips to and through California, first visiting the state in April 1891. Some of Owney’s hotel key check tokens are from visits to large exquisitely decorated hotels, the finest of their cities. But for Owney, and his Railway Mail Service companions, the more likely accommodations would be a small hotel or boarding house near the train station. This token represents the latter, with the very apt and descriptive title of “Railroad Eating House & Hotel.”