June/July Trip – Day #28 (More Nebraska)

Actually, this is the last full day in Nebraska. Then, we move on to Colorado for the remaining four days of this trip.

From a long-closed furniture store in Franklin:

This modern sign in Arapahoe is lit with LED strips:

This sign is in Lexington:

This former ALCO discount/department store sign in McCook. The Midwest chain was officially gone by 2015 so it’s surprising that this sign hasn’t been painted over yet. This store closed around 2014. The sign had neon originally. I love the lone UFO parking lot light:

These corrugated plastic signs are also in McCook. The family’s bakery business goes back to the 1500s in Germany. The company expanded to the U.S. in the 1800s. The McCook location is the only one left. It opened in 1957 and moved here in 1981. These signs are probably from then:

This Buffalo Bill sign at Fort Cody Trading Post in North Platte is from the 1960s. It’s been repainted a few times and the neon is gone. The bottom panels are modern now and the sign is closed to the ground. The gift shop is still going strong:

Some more signs from North Platte:

On the ground floor of the Hotel Pawnee. This bar has been closed since around 1974 but the owner is restoring the building and plans to revive this business as well as the Tom-Tom Coffee Shop a few doors away:

This place in Ogallala opened in 1963 but I’m not sure when the cheerful cowboy was installed:

The Chateau Theatre in Wauneta has an unusual projecting sign that combines neon and backlit plastic for the marquee portion. The theatre opened in 1937 and has struggled to remain open for decades. It is currently open. I can’t find any vintage photos but I would guess that this sign is from the 1950s.

This Rexall drugstore in Franklin was originally located next door. The sign remained there although the building housed other types of businesses over the years. In 2018, Franklin Drugs moved into this building and the sign was moved over:

This Bear Alignment sign in Holdrege originally advertised for the D&T Body Shop. It was adapted for Turner around 2016. For more about these signs, see this page at my website:

https://www.roadarch.com/signs/bear.html

This neglected beauty is in the little town of Imperial, population 2,000:

Moving on to some non-signs… This teepee building in Atlanta housed The Wigwam souvenir stand by the 1950s:

I don’t know when it closed but, by 2000, the building was housing the Husker Hut bar and restaurant. It appears to be in use as a residence or storage space now:

This double canopy, former gas station is in Benkelman:

This building in North Platte was built in 1964 and still has the original facade. It is known as the Belton-McDonald Building but I don’t know what business was located here originally:

Lastly, this elephant statue (and some little buddies) in Cozad has been at the El Paraiso Mexican restaurant since the 1980s. It may have been there from a previous business but I can’t find any info about it: