Inside the Archives: Hilltop House

If you have lived in Los Alamos for very long, then it is likely you have run into someone who has used a building as a landmark when giving you directions. Now, whether that building is still in existence or the business names they use still occupy the space is a different story entirely. It could be “turn by the Conoco hill gas station,” or “just past the Hill Diner,” or “where the Los Alamos Inn used to be.” Whatever it may be, landmark buildings are a guidepost for our everyday lives. This month we’re digging #InsideTheArchives to a landmark that stands at the entrance to Los Alamos, welcoming visitors and locals alike: the Hilltop House Motel.

The Hilltop House Motel was built in the mid-1970s and had significant additions, such as a restaurant, made to it in 1980–1981. The Hilltop House’s annex was added in the mid/late 1980s and was just across Central Ave. The business closed in 2013 and the building has changed hands a couple times, but remains vacant at this time.
 
What are your memories of the Hilltop House Motel? Did you ever stay there? Did you eat at one of the restaurants housed there (can you remember their names)? Help us bring this Los Alamos landmark to life with your stories in the comments.

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The Hilltop House in the winter of 1983–1984. Waterman Collection, Los Alamos Historical Society Photo Archives.

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