Another gray day but I plodded thru. These signs in Aurora, CO give you an idea of the gloom.

The original pole sign at the Biltmore Motel from the 1950s with a “Cooled by Refrigeration” panel:

This one is probably from the 1960s. There was a white plastic ball on top originally:

This one is a real leaner. I think it’s being held in place by the wood and vegetation:

These letters advertised for the Friend Furniture store. They were later moved to the owner’s office building:

There was different sign originally at the Ranger Motel with a cowboy on horseback – probably from the 1950s:

This one is probably from the late 1950s or early 1960s:

On to Broomfield, CO. When this vet moved, they brought along their sign. The practice first opened in 1957 and this sign might be from then:

A few signs from Loveland, CO. The “Derby Hill” was lit with neon originally. There’s neon behind the plastic faces of “Whiteside’s.” It looks like the bulbs are still lit:

Justine’s opened in 1971 and this signs are even lit during the day:

Their pole sign has a two-phase flashing arrow:

A couple more signs from Loveland, CO:

This sign previously advertised for King Lumber. It was adapted for King Storage around 1992:

This sign and building in Thornton, CO haven’t changed much since 1961. :

A couple of adapted signs from Louisville, CO. This one is pretty heartbreaking. The sign was built in 1955 for the Blue Parrot:

Around 2019, it was changed to look like this:

This sign originally advertised for Colacci’s which opened in 1955:

In 2000, it was altered for Pasquini’s:

In 2008, it began advertising for the Empire Lounge which closed earlier this year. Hopefully, it will remain in place, even if the text is changed:

The Mister Steak chain was founded in 1962 in Colorado Springs. Nearly 300 locations were built nationwide. These plastic signs were installed on the exteriors:

This one is located inside the World Famous Dark Bar in Boulder, CO:

This shopping center in Boulder, CO was built in 1958 and this sign is most likely from then:

Miller Farms in Platteville, CO has a bunch of statues of people, animals, and things. This sneaker and Hercules Beetle are just two examples:

This A&W in Berthoud, CO opened in 1949. It has a classic plastic oval pole sign circa 1960s. The Papa Burger on the canopy was installed around 2018. I don’t know where it came from:

Let’s close with a mid-century modern church. The Methodist Student Center in Boulder, CO was designed in 1957.

A couple more days of Colorado to go before we venture into Kansas.

Happy trails,
dj & the dogs

It was a big day of shooting around Denver with some crappy cloudy weather. So, this is a nice photo-packed post. Everything below is in Denver unless specified somewhere else.

Let’s start with this painted wood sign La Sierra Carniceria y Taqueria. There are actually two of these signs there and it seems to be the business’ logo:

There’s also this painted wall:

The Lions Lair opened in 1967 and I believe this backlit plastic sign is from then:

This bulb-crazy sign is at Monroe Discount Liquors. The curved arrow projects off the building. I believe the sign is still lit at night:

I assume that this sign had neon originally but those projecting lamps to light the sign at night look pretty old as well. The other side of this sign is even more faded:

This Rio Grande Liquor sign is another faded beauty:

The Olin Hotel was built in 1925 and this sign on the side of the building was probably installed a few years after that. Those (what I call) applied letter signs were commonly built in the 1920s and 1930s:

The Sun Liquors sign is missing the neon and most of the bulbs. I suspect that there were panels attached to the sides of the “LI” which are missing now but the sign has looked like this since at least 2007. As for the significance of the yellow bird, I wish I knew:

Mr. A’s has both neon and backlit plastic signs. The sign was fully lit just a few years ago but the neon is nearly all gone now:

The Horizon Lounge has two of these signs as well as a faded Hamm’s beer sign:

This camo-painted former gas station is across the street:

The Aristocrat’s “Motor Hotel” panel was originally a corrugated plastic panel (I like to call them “corduroy” panels) which I don’t think many/any sign companies are producing anymore. There was also another plastic “ballie” beneath the “vacancy” panel:

The barrel vault canopy is still there:

The Bar 404 sign has been through a lot. I believe the sign was built in 1951 for Feld’s Club 404. My 2012 photo:

By 2014, it had been crudely painted over by Brendan’s Pub:

It was painted entirely white after that until Rory’s Tavern painted it:

In 2021, it got its current look and a return to the original name. I would imagine that the bulbs along the outside were lit sequentially and that the martini’s bulbs were scintillating. Maybe someday, that can be restored — we can dream:

This sign was restored in 2013:

In Commerce City: this place opened in 1945 as the 6&85 Restaurant, named after its location at the intersection of two highways. In 1959, it became Deno’s 6&85 and these signs were installed. My 2012 photo:

Deno’s closed in 2017 and the place has been vacant since then. The big property has tons of prairie dogs and my dogs had a grand time chasing them:

At some point, the neon was replaced with terrible LED rope and this makes the sign even sadder than just broken neon tubing:

Back to Denver. This 20-foot-tall dog was installed in 2011 at the Denver Animal Shelter. “Sun Spot” is covered with 90,000 stainless steel dog tags. After 12 years, many of the tags are missing now:

This sign was built for the Pillar of Fire evangelical AM radio station. It has been there since at least the mid-1940s:

The La Fiesta Restaurant opened in 1964. This sign must be from then unless it was adapted from a previous business:

The Mayan Theatre — much nicer on a sunny day:

The Broadway Plaza was built in 1957. The “MOTEL” letters revolved:

In 2014, the building was renovated for office space and the signs were adapted for The Metlo (note the rearrangement of the “MOTEL” letters):

The Mozart Lounge sign was resurrected from a nasty repaint for the Aqua Lounge around 2014:

It was restored in 2016 back to the original look:

By 2007, the former Pig ‘N Whistle Motel & Restaurant sign had been adapted for a car wash. That was already closed when this photo was taken in 2012:

The sign was built in the mid-1950s and the business closed in 1991. Fortunately, in 2019, the sign was restored for a medical marijuana shop that took on the Pig ‘N Whistle name:

From Aurora: the Stanley Aviation factory was built in 1954 and I believe this sign is from then. The company closed in 2007 but the sign was not removed. Ten years later, the building was adapted for the Stanley Marketplace and the sign remains. The neon was replaced with LED rope:

Back to Denver: this air traffic control tower was built in 1962. It is all that remains of the Stapleton Airport. The building below now houses FlyteCo Tower, a brewery/restaurant and entertainment venue:

This building from 1961 originally housed the Women’s Club. It now houses the Wagstaff Law Firm:

Let’s close with this sweet sign at the Dive Inn:

Back soon with more Colorado.

Happy trails,
dj & the dogs

This sign in Lakewood, CO was repainted in 2014 but that didn’t last.

This sign in Lakewood was originally installed on the roof:

The Bugs Bunny Motel in Lakewood was built in 1952. Around 1997, Warner Brothers came after them and they changed the name to the Big Bunny Motel. The sign was changed (note the gap between the “B” and the “i” and the remaining neon “s”). The sign was pretty ratty with rust when I took this photo in 2012:

In 2015, the sign was repainted and everyone was shocked with the results. The fonts were changed but more appalling was the new bunny no longer holding a can and a carrot and painted inside the shape of the panels – yikes!

The Celebrity Lanes in Glendale, CO was built in 1960 and it was a really big deal with 80 lanes. This article has all the details:

http://buckfifty.org/2009/02/04/celebrity/

It also had an incredible sign with spinning sputniks:

The sign was adapted two years later for the new name:

Around 1979, it became the Celebrity Fun Center and the sign’s panels were changed again. The place closed in 1994 and was demolished the following year. The sign was destroyed but one of the sputniks was retrieved from a junkyard and is now displayed on the roof of the Lumber Baron Inn in Denver:

The Golden Bowl in Golden, CO was built in 1955 and this sign was most likely installed then. It had neon originally. It closed in 2014 and was demolished. The sign was saved and is now displayed inside the Natural Grocers supermarket that was built on the site:

Let’s move on to some mid-century buildings. One of my favorite chains in the Denver area were these Big Top convenience stores — for details & lots more examples, see my website here:

https://www.roadarch.com/modarch/food6.html

The first three locations were built in 1959, with 10 more between 1960-1964. They had big signs projecting from the roof and self-serve gas pumps.

There were at least 15 built with plans to build 100 of them. But the chain folded in the early 1970s and only 10 of these locations survive — all adapted for other purposes. One of these is inexplicably located in Ypsilanti, MI. Here are three that I reshot on this trip.

In Denver – now a meat market:

Another in Denver is now a Snarf’s Sandwiches:

And this one in Golden with a crappy add-on roof but still the original underside continues into the interior of the tattoo studio:

Let’s close with one more sign. The Pagliacci’s Italian restaurant opened in Denver in 1946. It closed in 2012 and the building was demolished. The rooftop sign featured an incredible neon clown extension sign:

This sign was sorta kinda preserved. The clown was (badly) replicated with a white background and stuck way up at the top of the new Lumina Building. Thank you Google StreetView because I’ve never had the stomach to shoot it. I sure hope someone saved that original tubing:

The text panel was turned into a triangulated planter located inside the building. I guess that’s a good thing?:

There are still about 3 more days of Colorado coming before we move on to Kansas. Just a reminder, there are other photos from each day being posted simultaneously over at Flickr here:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/agilitynut/

Happy trails,
dj & the dogs

Day 4 was pretty light with lots of miles between stops. So, I’m combining these two days for a bigger post.

A detail from the Golden Burro Cafe in Leadville, CO – note the two-phase wagging tail:

This one is in Walsenburg, CO – very few of these left:

I made a quick trip over the border to New Mexico. The Mesa Vista Motel in Raton, NM:

I’m sure this sign in Raton, NM had a neon text panel underneath the panel that’s there now:

DiLisio’s department store operated in Raton from 1918-1978. These letters remain on the edge of the building’s roof:

The former Solano Shoe Shop in Raton — for lots more shoe and boot signs, see this page at my website:

https://www.roadarch.com/sca/shoes.html

The gas station below is also in Raton. One of my favorite gas station designs are these streamline Conocos. Most had double canopies, porthole windows, and extensive use of green glazed tile (even in the bathrooms). I’ve got lots of them at my website — most of the survivors are in Texas:

https://www.roadarch.com/gas/txconoco.html

Perhaps my favorite detail is on the backside. These continuous windows allowed natural light in for the mechanics. Most remaining stations have filled in or covered these up but the station in Raton is intact:

When I went digging, I was surprised by how little info there is about these two scaffold signs. They are both prominent landmarks on the highest peaks in both Raton and Trinidad, CO. This one on top of Goat Hill has been there since at least the 1950s and I suspect a lot longer:

This one has been there since at least the 1920s:

On to Colorado. This sign in Alamosa, CO at a still-operating cleaners:

St. George the Dragonslayer in Crested Butte, CO:

The backlit plastic sign at Chong’s Cafe in Pueblo, CO is blown out but the neon top is what matters:

A giant chile in Pueblo:

This rubber duck is located at the Quacker Gift Shop in Manitou Springs, CO:

This sign in Manitou Springs is really getting rusty (business long gone). I always hold my breath that it will still be there whenever I’m in town:

One of two former Tastee-Freez locations in Colorado Springs:

The Fox Theatre in Walsenburg, CO:

I was devastated to see that this sign in Pueblo, CO which I shot last year…:

… had been painted over sometime earlier this year when a sushi place moved into the space. Better than removing it, I guess. Too bad it couldn’t have been moved to the Neon Alley instead.

Let’s close with the many faces of this sign in Canon City, CO. It was built in the 1950s for the El Camino Inn:

Sometime after 1991, it became the Travel Inn Motel and the sign was adapted. My photo below is from last year. Yes, very odd how they made the letter “T” basically unreadable:

Well, earlier this year, they did some repainting. Maybe that ladder indicates that they are still not done?

Moving on to Denver in the next post.

Happy trails,
dj & the dogs

A little bit of Utah before we move on to full-time Colorado for many days. This vacuum-form plastic sign still remains at a former laundromat in Green River, UT:

This one is also in Green River — Ray’s Tavern:

At the Hole ‘N the Rock tourist attraction in Moab, UT. These two signs, now hanging in the petting zoo area, were originally installed at Howard’s Sporting Goods in Cortez, CO:

The Apache Motel itself in Moab is looking pretty spiffy now. The sign hasn’t had neon in decades but I’m glad the arrow and Native American are still there:

There’s a new attraction in town called the Moab Giants which has a half-mile trail with over 100 dinosaur statues. Alas, the business was not open when I was there and I had to make do with this statue near the entrance. Next time!

This sign is way, way up at the top of the building in Grand Junction, CO:

How about three giant things in Grand Junction – this chrome car bumper buffalo in front of the Wells Fargo Bank:

This giant guitar is installed above the sign at Big J Jewelry & Loan:

I’ve seen the same style vacuums in Texas – this one is installed on top of the sign at Russ Vacuum:

This sign is located in Whitewater, CO. The office building with logs or faux logs is very cool, too. I have in my notes that the motel opened in Grand Junction in the 1920s and was moved her in the 1970s. But I can’t confirm that anywhere online or find any vintage images:

This former Safeway is in Montrose, CO:

This former Rexall Drug in Hotchkiss, CO is now used as a gym:

This sign in Delta, CO was surely a lot nicer when it had neon. But I’m glad it’s still there. Maybe it wasn’t McKnight’s originally?

That clock though – if you’ve studied street clock history like I have, you will immediately recognize that it’s a Brown Street Clock from Monessen, PA without checking the base. There’s a great website here which covers the history, locations, the full deal:

https://shiawasseehistory.com/brownstreet.html

This former Circle K convenience store in Palisade, CO has been transformed into the 13 Degrees Brix Cider Bistro:

Let’s end this post with some ice cream — this is also in Palisade at the Palisade Peach Shack:

Back soon with lots more Colorado.

Happy trails,
Debra Jane & the dogs

Let’s get right to it. This teepee in Kanab, UT was built for a gift shop. I can’t find info about the original name or year it was built but it was there by 1987 when John Margolies took this photo:

There is still a gift shop there. My photo from 2014:

Around 2021, it was transformed into this:

It’s is meant to resemble Thor’s Hammer in nearby Bryce Canyon National Park:

The Dairy Drive Inn in Bluff, UT appears to be closed but these two signs remain. I’m guessing they are both from the 1960s:

The boy is a representation of the Eat-it-All boy which was used for the company’s ice cream cones (and, I believe, other products later):

There was even an Eat-it-All girl and there were even stuffed dolls, ashtrays, etc. made by the company:

I believe the cones are still being produced by Keebler:

This paddle wheeler in Page, AZ was a functioning tourist ship that operated in Lake Powell from 1979-2009. It was then moved into town and converted into a pizza place. It became the teriyaki restaurant in 2020:

There are four of these covered wagon “cabins” at the Lake Powell Campground in Page. They were produced by the Conestoga Wagon Co. For more info about them and other locations where you can see or rent them, see my website here:

https://www.roadarch.com/mim/vehicles2.html

The “other” sign (see my Flickr stream for the more commonly photographed sign: https://www.flickr.com/photos/agilitynut/) at the Cork ‘n Bottle liquor store in Cortez, CO. I believe the panel on top would have advertised for Coca-Cola originally but I could be wrong. I have never seen one of this design with 7-Up:

I’m just a little crazy about these 7-2-11 Food Store signs and drove a few hours out of my way just to shoot this one in Kayenta, AZ. From the looks of the boarded-up building, I might have gotten there just in time. Although I don’t think development is encroaching on Kayenta any time soon:

I’ve shot this one in Farmington, NM before on a sunnier day but they white background on this trip is kinda nice. There’s another one of these in Gallup, NM with the same design and an additional, vintage plastic sign on the roof:

I stumbled into this one in Farmington on Auburn Ave. that I didn’t know about and is not listed anywhere at Google. There’s another one of these in Farmington on Schofield Ln. Most of these old signs have been replaced with crappy plastic panels. If you know of any others, I’d love to hear from you:

The Kigalia Drive-in in Blanding, UT operated from 1955-1964. The screen was dozed but the sign remained in place. My photo from 2012:

A kind soul took mercy on it and had it restored (sans neon) and moved to his ranch in Blanding where you can see it from the road:

While we’re on the subject of drive-in signs, there’s this one in Naturita, CO. The Uranium Drive-in operated from 1954 until the mid-1980s. In 2012, the sign was restored (sans neon) and moved to this spot on the main road in town:

This Elks Lodge sign in Durango, CO looks like it might be from the 1950s. The letters are not evenly spaced so I suspect it was either restored at some point (paint looks fresh) or possibly adapted from other text:

Let’s end with the End O’Day Motel sign from Durango. I love the little flag on top and even the cute vandalism happy face. This would be a beauty if someone could raise the funds for a restoration.:

It was originally the End O’ Day Court:

From this older postcard, it looks like the triangulated pole cover panels were added later:

The next many posts after this will be focusing on Colorado.

Happy trails,
dj & the dogs

Here come the blog posts! This trip turned out to be a three-weeker instead of a five. I’m trying to convince myself of the glass half full. I did get a lot done and covered just under 11,000 miles but still, a bummer. I came home with about 2,700 photos for the website (instead of the usual ~4,000). When my transmission started acting sketchy after going up a grade, I went to a shop in Branson, MO and it would be 2 weeks to even get a replacement. So, I did the sensible thing and headed home. My van ran pretty-much flawlessly all the way home which was a relief but made me question whether I should have powered through my enormous Missouri and Illinois lists. Next year!

Anyhow… I’ll be posting a few photos at posts here for each day of shooting as I add batches of photos to my website (roadarch.com). It’ll probably take about 4 months to get everything Photoshopped, researched, and inserted in the appropriate spot there. I’ll also be posting some different photos over at Flickr just before posting here:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/agilitynut/

I got out of work a couple hours early and motored east through California en route, eventually, to the Midwest. Then, I made some stops in Nevada and Utah the following day. Let’s move on to some photos.

From Lancaster, CA at Cactus Liquor:

and the former Sands Bowl (now Bowlero). I’m sooooo glad they kept this curved, mural with Egyptian figures in painted relief. There are pool tables in the room now but I’m guessing it was something nicer before (dining? event space?):

The “Flying Nun House” in Apple Valley, CA:

A couple of signs from Barstow, CA:

at Tom’s Welding:

From Shoshone, CA – a detail of the globe at the top of the Chas. Brown Market sign (neon now LED rope):

Seemoore’s Ice Cream in Pahrump, NV:

In Boulder City, NV – there were a number of sculptures on my list that I hadn’t shot before:

Moving on to Las Vegas, NV. There were a lot of recently restored neon signs in to shoot – here are just two of them:

Many things that appear at my blog are never uploaded to my website. For example, the super rusty/crusty signs, buildings too funky or modern, modern signs, etc. Here, then, are some modern signs that won’t be at the site but deserve to be shot and included here.

The bird on top of the sign was built (I think) for the Aruba Hotel, the building’s previous occupant, which housed the Thunderbird Lounge. It is a small tribute to the signs at the Thunderbird Hotel built in 1948 and demolished in 2000. That hotel was located further south on Las Vegas Blvd:

A detail on the marquee readerboard at the El Cortez Hotel. I believe the comedy/tragedy masks were originally painted gold:

The Griffith United Methodist Church from 1955:

Last shot for this post from Kanab, UT:

I’ll be back soon with more Utah stuff.

Happy trails,
dj & the dogs