Painted Desert Inn is a historic complex in Petrified Forest National Park, in Apache County, eastern Arizona.

[4] A portion of the main building was remodeled from the 1920s inn on the site, nicknamed the Stone Tree House due to local petrified wood used in its architectural elements.

[6] Demolition was proposed in the mid-1970s, but after public protests the building was reopened for limited use in 1976 as a Bicentennial Travel Center after being listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

[7] The main building of the Painted Desert Inn was extensively rehabilitated and restored over the years, reopening as a museum and bookstore in the 1990s full time.

Colter knew Kabotie from a previous collaboration at the Fred Harvey Hopi House in Grand Canyon National Park.