Days 27 and 28: More Illinois

Lots of rain and grey plagued me in early July and I had to sit the shooting out for a bit. So, I’m doubling up these less productive two days for this post.

I hopped across the border briefly to shoot some things in nearby Burlington, IA like these giant chairs at Furniture Row:

This giant cone, draped with ugly LED rope, stands outside the Arrow Cafe (recently the Twist & Shout) in Oquawka:

This Mighty Mouse riding an elephant in Malta was previously installed at a car wash Round Lake Beach. Before that, it’s unknown. There was one in Benson, NH built for Mighty Mouse Playworld. That one was later moved to Magic Forest in Lake George, NY before it was sold to a private collector. This statue was built from the same mold, supposedly FAST in Sparta, WI. So, there were definitely two of these and possibly others will turn up:

These meerkats are in Annawan at Paxton’s Corner Coop where there are lots of other statues:

This astronaut is from the same place. There are little steps behind it so that you can stick your face inside the helmet for those photo-ops:

This Mr. Spock/Star Trek Vulcan inspired chainsaw-carved hand salute is in front of a house in Peru:

This Wild Bill Hickock sculpture is installed in Troy Grove on the street where he was born:

This sad former Phillips 66 gas station is in Little York has looked like this since at least 2008. The chimney was starting to crumble so at least they put siding on it:

A detail from the elaborate Washington Theatre in Quincy:

Also in Quincy — St. Boniface Church, just another midcentury modern John Benya masterpiece:

While this dome homein Somonauk appears to be midcentury, it was built in 2002:

This Tastee-Freez from 1950 is in Spring Valley:

The former Anguish & Wolfenbarger Ford dealership has these painted ghost signs on both sides of the building in Dallas City:

Here are a couple of other great ghost signs that thankfully have NOT been repainted (call me a purist, but I hate that!) –from Galesburg:

and from Buda:

This metal sign with the embossed Sherwin-Williams globe is in Monmouth. The vines have either died or been cut back because this one was half-covered just a few years ago:

A modern neon sign from Peru:

The former Paramount Club in La Salle. Note that the name on the sign is misspelled on both sides at the top but they got it right on the later plastic panel below. Those green porcelain panels on the right with the musical notes that form the very abstracted arrow and cover the other sign pole used to extend all the way down to the ground:

This one is from Quincy. The hotel is apartments now but The Patio restaurant has reopened and looks pretty fancy. I’m glad they didn’t ditch this sign:

These stainless steel letters in Quincy are installed on the corner and over all the entrances. This former Durst Brothers Sunshine Dairy is now a Prairie Farms Dairy but the letters and glass block remain:

This sign was originally installed in Kewanee where it advertised for a cleaners. My photo from 2009:

The cleaners closed around 2016 and the sign was moved to Langley where it has been adapted:

Strangely enough, this sign’s design seems to be a near-match for this one in Columbus, OH:

This sign is in Hinckley. Unfortunately, someone repainted the letters on the top panel which created the streaks over the porcelain enamel. From the miracles I’ve seen in the past, this could be fixed with some buffing:

This place in Bureau burned down in 2020 and it seems very unlikely that it will be rebuilt. The sign is now being taken over by vegetation. You can barely see the white arrowhead at the bottom:

This sign in Mendota has been missing its neon for decades but it looks like the restaurant is still bustling:

A farmer’s cooperative sign in Earlville. There are only a handful of these signs left in the country and, of those, most have metal instead of plastic faces. This one has one of the company’s unique sign poles as well:

This sign is in La Salle. In my notes now as a “reshoot” for better weather someday:

This one which is also in La Salle is a real mystery. Despite my internet prowling, I have no idea what type of business this was. I’ve emailed some historical groups and people in town and hope to get an answer but have not heard anything back:

The last item for this point is from DeKalb. The pink neon and the skeleton sign in the window are still maintained. But I don’t think the bulbs are lit: