Day 26: Illinois Continues

What better way to spend the holidays than working on my website? I’ve got another day’s batch all uploaded to my website. So, here’s another post before the New Year.

Yes, that’s Abraham Lincoln reading a book while on horseback. This one is in Petersburg. There’s another one of these in Midland, MI:

This chainsaw-carved woodpecker is installed waaaaay up on the water tower in Peoria Heights:

This brand new sign in Beardstown with a giant soccer ball:

This stainless steel tree sculpture in Morton was funded by local donors (their names are on the leaves):

This vitrolite storefront is in Rushville. The “Bakers” sign was obviously added later. I’ve dug like crazy and can’t find the original jewelry store name:

This former Phillips 66 gas station in in Beardstown. The building to the right out of frame is a freestanding service bay building — also for the Phillips 66:

The streamline moderne Earnest Chatten House in Quincy:

This former Standard Oil gas station in Macomb now houses a gun shop:

The barrel canopied Clayberg Nursing Center in Cuba:

The Quincy Regional Airport was one of the most amazing stops on this entire five-week trip. If you’re even half as crazy about midcentury modern buildings as I am — and you have plans to visit Quincy — I recommend this great little guide: https://seequincy.com/guides/mid-mod-quincy/

This overhead photo from the Herald-Whig newspaper gives you a clue of the complete building design. The orange circle over on the left is a nice little rooftop, hangout spot with tables. And those blue shapes are the skylights shown in my photo below:

This theatre is in Chillicothe:

This former A&W “pilgrim hat” is in Pekin:

This terrazzo apron is in Quincy:

I believe this is the only surviving Ford Hopkins Drugs sign even though there were about 300 locations in the Midwest. It’s in Macomb although the store itself is long gone:

They were pretty classy inside — each one had a “tea room” with an extensive menu:

This one in South Bend, IN:

This sign is at the still-operating location in Quincy — part of a Midwest chain but this sign was either unique or the only one left:

Speaking of chains… this “skinny M” McDonald’s sign in Quincy has an updated panel with a horrific graphic display panel:

This sign in Macomb is a replica sign — built around 2014. The business was founded in 1908 and is still chugging along:

This sign is above the marquee at the former Illinois Theatre in Macomb:

This sign is installed in Petersburg. The sign came from another Rexall store and the name on top was changed to Potter:

This is one of those glass half-full/empty stories. One of the best Federal Electric sectional, bulb signs out there is/was in Quincy. The rectangular letters have odd-shaped spacer porcelain enamel mini panels so that this sign could be built on a curve. Here’s a photo I took in 2009:

Granted, there were chips and rust… to be expected for a 110-year old sign… (built 1911 or 1912). But in 2022, I was saddened to the core to see that the sign had been painted over! That’s no way to treat porcelain enamel and a sign as important as this one. Each of the letters had the little patent letters at the bottom and the detailed borders – now GONE! Here’s an example of what I mean from this nicely-preserved sign in Idaho Springs, ID (TG — indoors!):

Welp. Here’s what the sign looks like now. White borders, no longer navy blue. I guess it could be worse… or gone. For more about these signs, see my website here: https://www.roadarch.com/sca/federal.html

On to happier things. Like this Masonic Lodge sign in Macomb:

This rooftop sign is in Virginia at the My Little Mexico (formerly Depot Diner). I think this sign was there before the Depot Diner but all of my internet prowling came up dry:

And lastly — this cutie in West Peoria was installed around 2017. There was a boring plastic text sign there before that. The truckbed originally moved up and down – wasn’t moving though when I was there in July: