Starting off with some statues: this pair of crazed, muscled-up marble lions is installed in Alton:

These Stephen Douglas and Abraham Lincoln sculptures are installed in Alton at the site of their last debate:

This 27-foot-tall Statue of Liberty was built around 1902 and originally installed on top of a building in New York City. In 2003, it was moved to the Brooklyn Museum of Art parking lot. Last year, the statue was donated to the National Building Arts Center in Sauget where is will eventually be displayed. It’s going to cost about $50,000 to restore:

The world’s tallest man, Robert Wadlow, was born and raised in Alton — and this life-sized statue and a replica of his chair are installed in a park there:

The Bon Air opened as a bar in Alton in 1921. It has expanded considerably since 1981 when it became Fast Eddie’s Bon Air:

This theatre in Alton has been vacant since 1977:

A couple of midcentury buildings — this one in Collinsville:

And this one in Granite City:

This vacant, former Henry’s Hamburgers location in East St. Louis would have looked like this originally:

This Hen House in Mitchell has been vacant since at least 2013:

This former Tastee-Freez is in Venice:

This Oddfellows Lodge sign is in Jerseyville:

This sign in Pittsfield was repainted and the neon restored around 2021:

This sign is in Roxana:

This one is in Madison:

This sign is in Alton:

The Jacoby Furniture sign in Alton was adapted for the Jacoby Art Center in 2006:

The neon on this sign in Granite City was restored in 2020:

This hardware sign in Edwardsville:

was adapted in 2012:

This recreated local sign is installed at the It’s Electric Neon Sign Park in Granite City with two other recreated signs:

The last Mister Donut location still operating in the U.S. — in Godfrey:

Back with more Illinois soon — about 12 days & posts left for this trip.

Happy trails,
dj & the dogs

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