From the Dinosaur statues section… The Green Forest Car Wash in Los Angeles, CA became Luv Car Wash earlier this year and the dinosaur statues are gone:

Every year, I discover the loss of at least one Kress department store building during this map-clicking process. This time, it was the one in Shawnee, OK which had been damaged in a tornado in 2023:

Moving on to some signs from the SCA section. This section has companion pages for the Journal articles that I wrote for the Society for Commercial Archeology from 2007-2025. This is a smallish section with about 100 pages. Towards the end of this winter project will come the “real” Signs section with about 400 pages.

From the Cars Signs page — this sign in Dover, OH is gone now:

The car sign at the Car Shack in Corpus Christi, TX….:

… has a new paint job:

From the Skating Signs page – the Jack’s Skateland’s sign in Fort Smith, AR…

… has unfortunately updated the original corrugated text panel from 1962 (but they kept the same general style of font & a nice clunky skate)…. AND!!! they added neon back to the star – wow-ee! I just added to my reshoot list & map for this summer on my way back from Tennessee & Kentucky:

The star is very likely a Neo-Lectra Jr — shown here in the middle of the ad:

From the Pancakes Signs page — This sign in Selma, AL is gone now. It had been moved to the Steak Pit in 2014 which had the same owners. But now the Steak Pit is also closed:

This sign in St. Louis, MO...:

… is being restored/updated by new owners. It’s not up yet on the street yet or at GoogleStreetView but poking around, you can see what it will look like soon. From their FB page — chasing lights & neon, repainted light brown (pancake color?), “Pancakes” replaced with “Pancake House”….

… and from their website, although the cocktail glass is gone (bummer), there will be pancakes instead!

From the Penguins & Polar Bears Signs page — DeLuxe Cleaners in Clifton, NJ …

closed earlier this year and this sign is gone now. The other signs remain for now:

From the Pizza Chef Signs page… Uncle Dante’s Pizza (later Tulipano’s Pizza) in Egg Harbor Township, NJ is now a Filipino restaurant and this fun sign is gone:

From the Plumbing Signs page — In Los Angeles, the Adee Plumbing signs and those long-repainted mystery panels to the right are both gone now:

From the Mechanical Signs pages — this former Boot Barn sign (horse originally had moving legs) in Billings, MT is gone now. The good news is that there are still three of these signs left — with the one in Cheyenne, WY still operating.

This post is getting pretty long. So, I’ll pick back up soon in the next post with more “news” from the SCA Signs section. The Giant Stuff and Car Showrooms will be next.

Happy Trails,
dj & the dogs

website | blog | Flickr | Instagram

Nothing to report from the Fairy Tale & Santa Parks section.

So, let’s start with some good news from the Bus Stations section. The former Greyhound bus station in Olympia, WA has been renovated and adapted as the Bus Stop Bar & Bistro. Wonderful good news after being on the endangered list for many years. My 2015 photo:

And the renovated building which opened late last year — from their FB page:

From the Bottling Plants buildings section… I didn’t get a chance to shoot this 1961 building yet in Durham, NC… and GSV shows that it was demolished earlier this year in order to build housing. There are plans to integrate “pieces” of the building into the new development. We’ve heard that before! Usually, some awful tribute and not even the original “pieces”:

Moving on to Drive-in Theatres section. The Starlite Drive-in in El Monte, CA has been bulldozed for housing. But, as promised, they are “preserving” the sign. It must be a replica since the current sign was a complete wreck. Here’s a photo I took in 2013:

And it only got worse after that. Here’s GSV from last May:

Both sides of the original sign from 1950. Note the long-missing “Drive In” letters and stars in the background:

Now at the November GSV: this is the side that’s nearly done (other side still missing star and letters). Apparently, the stars in the background will also be replicated!

The Van Del Drive-in screentower in Middle Point, OH…:

… has been repainted to match its sign:

From the Tires Stores section… This Goodyear store in Pontiac, MI moved to another location and this sign is gone now:

Another of these now rare giant Goodyear signs — this one in Columbus, OH…:

was adapted earlier this year:

Earlier this year, the Firestone letters on this building in Spokane Valley, WA…

… had been replaced with plastic versions and that part of the building had been painted black (why?!? but it seems to be a trend as I have seen other Firestones that have done this). The pole sign still has neon:

The long-closed Firestone in Butte, MT…:

… now houses the Butte Native Wellness Center. I’m not a fan of how they stuck cow skulls right on top of the Firestone shields:

And lastly, this Firestone sign in Bakersfield, CA is gone now:

Back with more “news” soon. Dinosaur statues and Department stores are next.

Happy Trails,
dj & the dogs

website | blog | Flickr | Instagram

The grueling winter project has begun. But it’s so necessary to keep my website as current as possible and plan reshoots in the future. In this slew of posts over the next few months, you’ll find before/after shots (my photos vs. snippets from the latest Google StreetView maps). I promise there will be some good news here and there. But most of the changes will be on a scale somewhere between sad and heartbreaking.

I always start off with the small sections and work up to the biggest ones (like the Gas Stations, Mid-century Buildings, and Signs sections which are huge — so those posts are months away).

Nothing to report for the Paul Bunyan and Collections statues sections this year. No changes for the Egyptian Revival building section. No news is good news.

From the Tiki section, a couple of things to mention. This building in Niles, OH was built for the Aloha restaurant and later became the Sunshine Chinese Buffet. My photo from 2010:

It had been vacant since around 2014 until earlier this year when it was remodeled for a cannabis store:

Also, from the Tiki section. The former Bahooka restaurant in Rosemead, CA was always hard to shoot because of all the palm trees but here’s a photo I took in 2008:

Well, now the palms are gone and so are the remaining Polynesian architectural features:

From the Teepees section, it appears that the teepee from the 1940s in Globe, AZ is being restored. There have been plans to do so since 2021. Here’s a photo I took in 2012:

and now from a couple of months ago at GSV. I assume repainting is to come:

The Teepee in Allentown, AZ… was originally a gas station office:

My photo from 2012:

And now… the windows and door have been covered up:

This Teepee in Hollywood, FL was built as a souvenir stand in the 1950s:

At some point, a building was built around it. But now it’s gone and so is the entire building:

This Teepee in Cave City, KY is gone now:

From the Vessels section (giant bottles, coffee pots, and other giant containers)… This building in Reading, PA was built for the Levengood Dairies milk/ice cream store chain with cup-shaped buildings. Over the years, the rounded cup was covered with siding and the giant straw was removed. The building housed Speedie’s Dinette from 1974-2020. It had been vacant since then. My photo from 2010:

Earlier this year, the building became home to the King of Stoves and a crown was added above the former cup:

The giant cup (and the Starbucks) in Sacramento, CA which had been there since at least 2008 are gone now:

This cup and mug in Del Norte, CO are gone now:

From the Food section…. the Bagelry in San Francisco, CA has closed and this giant bagel is gone:

Tanner’s Big Orange opened at this location in Greenville, SC in 1966 and this sign with the giant hot dog was installed then. The restaurant closed in 2023 and there’s a new pizza place going into the building. It sounds like this sign is coming down and will most likely be destroyed:

The former Cheese House in Wells, ME, with its wheel of cheese shaped building, has closed. There were about 20 of these buildings in this 1960s chain and only a handful of these buildings are left. The scruffy mouse on the roof is also gone. I’m devastated. He was the last mouse left:

Here’s a postcard of one that was in Wiscassett, ME. For more about these buildings and to see the ones that still survive, see this page at my website: https://www.roadarch.com/food/other2.html

Mac’s Deli in Kenosha, WI closed around 2021. Earlier this year, the building began housing another business and this Nut Bar was removed:

The Vinehenge playground in Escondido, CA was removed earlier this year when the grapes and vines were showing some wear and found to be unsafe:

***********************************************

And while I’m posting all this news… Here are a couple of things that happened very recently which have been updated at my website already.

The former Franksville in Joliet, IL had a bad fire about 3 days ago and the building will likely be demolished. My photo from last year:

About a week ago, the Jack and Jill Bowling Lanes sign in American Fork, UT fell over during high winds. My photo from 2014:

The damage looks pretty bad and I don’t know if it will be restored. The sign is about 50 feet tall so it would cost a fortune to repair or even replicate. Here’s a photo from KSL-TV:

I’ll be back soon with another newsworthy post. Happy Holidays!

Happy Trails,
dj & the dogs

website | blog | Flickr | Instagram

Here are a few photos from the last three days on the road heading home.

These three modern signs are in Tulsa, OK. For a lot more modern Tulsa signs (and some vintage), see this website: https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/cfdeaf12a9454c55aad4f5b5250d0d52

The Apache Motel sign in Tucumcari, NM — laying the in the parking lot for a couple of years now to prevent it from falling over:

Here’s a photo that I took of it in 2012:

At No Bull Prime Meats in Albuquerque, NM:

A former Tastee-Freez (now Mexican restaurant) in Albuquerque:

The streamline moderne Lembke House in Albuquerque:

Nearly home – a former gas station next to the Road Runner’s Retreat in Chambless, CA:

Here are the numbers from this trip:
35 days on the road, 14,027 miles (avg. 401 mi per day). I spent $2950 on gas and had to replace two tires ($464). There were 3 oil changes ($322) and about $80 in tolls. Museum admissions about $80. But no speeding tickets! I came home with about 5750 photos which are all up now at the website (roadarch.com). Remember, what you see here and at Flickr/Instagram is only a teeny tiny fraction of what’s at the site.

You won’t hear from me for at least a month as I’ll be putting together the lists and maps for next summer’s trip (focusing on Kentucky and Tennessee).

Once that’s done, I’ll be doing the grueling winter project going through all the maps in descriptions for all 3500+ pages at my website to see what’s changed since last year. I’ll be posting to this blog throughout this process (takes about six months) with the bad & good news about what’s been demolished/repainted/adapted, etc. since last year’s check.

I hope you’ve enjoyed tagging along virtually via the posts from this summer’s trip. Bye for now from me and my travel buddies: Orbit, Griswold, Dilly, & Gremlin at just one of our fave beaches in town:

Happy Trails,
dj & the dogs

website | blog | Flickr | Instagram

This is the last full day of shooting on this trip before I hit the interstate towards home.

Let’s start with this Chicken Car at Ron’s Roost in Cincinnati. More about these cars at my website here: https://www.roadarch.com/critters/birdscars.html

Giant baseballs in front of the Great American Ballpark in Cincinnati:

These books were originally part of a fountain in front of a library in Cincinnati. Now, they’ve been moved back next to the entrance and used as a planter:

This giant bottle is at a liquor store in Covington, KY:

“Clive” the alien is installed on a parking garage is also in Covington, KY:

Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus, the Roman soldier and statesman, is the guy after which Cincinnati was named:

This flying pig nearby, Lucius Quinctius Pigasus, is a more modern, humorous rendition:

There are many Mr. Redlegs (mascot of the Cincinnati Reds) statues in different uniforms on benches scattered around town:

A detail from the Cincinnati Enquirer newspaper building:

A detail from the Times-Star newspaper building — also in Cincinnati:

The long-abandoned Regal Theatre in Cincinnati is about to be restored:

The Marianne Theatre in Bellevue, KY:

The former American National Bank in Newport, KY:

A former gas station in Cincinnati:

A former Tresler Comet gas station in Cincinnati:

An operating Mountain View Diner in Cincinnati:

I believe this sign in Cincinnati with its revolving bottom panel was built for the Gateway Quarter real estate office around 2007 (Google StreetView):

The sign’s panels were swapped for Taste of Belgium in 2012 and they’re looking pretty awful now. This location closed in September. Hopefully, the next business will keep this design and just replace the panels. Maybe get a new ballie for the bottom, please:

This clothing store in Cincinnati closed in 2016 but the sign remains. I believe it opened in 1961 and this sign appears to be from then:

This sign in Covington, KY originally advertised for Covington Chili:

The Western Bowl sign in Cincinnati with its crappy LED tubing “update”:

The Golden Fleece Lounge in Cincinnati was some other bar before this. But despite my digging, I don’t know what it was:

The Brass Ass Lounge in Newport, KY has been MANY bars before this and the sign updated just as many times. I think the sign dates from the late 1940s when it was the Stark Club. This vintage image shows the bar sign on the left when it was the Galaxie Club:

Rich’s Jewelers in Covington, KY opened in 1944 and this sign may be from then. For more about these Gruen Clock signs, see my website here: https://www.roadarch.com/sca/clocks.html#Gowdy

When I shot the sign this summer, it still had the Rich’s name on one side, but now both sides have been adapted for the Noche restaurant. It makes me sad — but they did a nice job. From their website:

This sign in Cincinnati was restored in 2017 by the American Sign Museum’s Neonworks shop:

This sign in Cincinnati originally advertised for the Route 52 Flying Saucer Drive-in:

Three more signs from Cincinnati:

And lastly, this sign from Newport, KY which was brought back to life a couple of years ago when the building was restored. The store itself is gone:

There will be one more short post from this trip with some photos from the long drive home and a trip summary (miles driven, etc.).

Happy Trails,
dj & the dogs

website | blog | Flickr | Instagram

This guy is at the still-operating Frisch’s Big Boy in West Chester, OH:

This mastodon is in Sharonville, OH:

This former A&W (now The Root Beer Stand) is also in Sharonville, OH. The folded plate canopy was turned into a dining room in recent years.

The Cornerstone Missionary Baptist Church with its rocket ship steeple is in Cincinnati:

This streamline moderne former Nehi Beverage bottling plant in Cincinnati is currently vacant:

This Dairy Queen in St. Bernard, OH started out with a flat roof walk-up stand, probably with a neon sign on top, and was remodeled later to this split gable style & lips pole sign:

This former gas station with its porcelain enamel tile slanted roof was originally a Pure Oil station. It is in Cincinnati:

This sign in Cincinnati originally had neon and a bulb-studded arrow:

This sign is also in Cincinnati:

The Tasty Bird in Cincinnati was part of a soul food restaurant chain. This photo from the Cincinnati Enquirer is from 2003:

And what the signs look like at this point:

I spent a good part of the day revisiting the American Sign Museum (and visiting with Tod) in Cincinnati. If you love signs, it’s an absolute-must destination. The signs below are just a tiny sampling of the hundreds of signs. It you want a better idea of what’s there, see these pages at my website: https://www.roadarch.com/signs/ohasm.html

This is one of my favorites: ripple tin panels AND colored opal glass letters at the top:

Just another incredible backlit, colored opal glass sign:

A couple of super old jewelry signs: a bulb-lit ring-shaped sign and a backlit, perforated metal sign below:

A really nice Federal Electric bulb sign with lots of porcelain enamel detail and sectional “MEAT” letters:

The recently acquired Frisch’s Big Boy Mainliner sign from Fairfax, OH which is being restored right in the middle of the museum:

This one came from Beaver, UT:

This one came from Brooklyn, NY:

The camera below came from Loomis Camera in Elyria, OH — my photo from 2007:

These signs came from New York City. The museum features a simulated main street with signs on the facades and other related signs in the display windows:

And lastly — from Toledo, OH — my photo from 2011:

and now gloriously restored at the museum:

One full day’s shooting left with more stuff from Cincinnati coming up in the next blog post.

Happy Trails,
dj & the dogs

website | blog | Flickr | Instagram

The last day of Indiana for this trip. Let’s start with the Jim Hipp Nursery in Haubstadt which has dozens of statues including these:

Also in Haubstadt — at the Weather Rock Campground which has about a dozen statues:

The Joe Palooka sculpture in Oolitic:

An Art Deco detail from the former Elks Lodge/now Grover Museum in Shelbyville:

The former Central Library in Evansville — now the Children’s Museum:

A former Biff-Burger in Evansville:

The former Whirlpool Employees Federal Credit Union in Evansville:

A Frosty Boy in New Palestine:

The long-closed Walnut Theatre in Lawrenceburg:

A sputnik-style sign at the Nick Nackery in Evansville. More about these signs at my website here: https://www.roadarch.com/sca/roto3.html#Brown

Wilson’s General Store & Cafe in Evansville closed around 2019 but the sign collection is still there. This sign came from Mt. Pleasant, TN:

This sign is in Versailles:

Smith Jewelry in Princeton has been closed/vacant for years but this sign remains:

The Expressway GM dealership in Mt. Vernon has a few vintage signs inside:

This sign is installed on the side of the Gerst Haus restaurant in Evansville:

This sign is in Greensburg. It looked prettier in green and when it had neon. I believe there was a different name at the bottom originally:

The Cork Liquors sign in Shelbyville is modern. The chain has only been around since 1982 and some of the other locations have these neon signs:

This was taken in horrible light with the sign directly behind. This pet shop in Evansville has five neon animals — probably modern. But the store was just bought out by a pet food chain and I’m fearful these signs will be removed:

I believe this sign in Evansville is from the 1950s:

Evans Motors in Evansville was established in 1978 but this sign is clearly earlier than that:

And lastly, another one from Evansville — at the Lewis Bakery which produces Bunny Bread, Sunbeam, Butternut, and other breads. Yes, this one operates at night– with sequentially lit ears:

There’s just a tiny bit more of Indiana to go and then we’ll be moving on to some Ohio stuff.

Happy Trails,
dj & the dogs

website | blog | Flickr | Instagram

Let’s start with this giant bug at Midwest Antiques & Collectibles in English, IN. There’s also a bat on the canopy (see directly behind him):

This skull in Louisville used to be driven around during the Halloween parade before it was installed on Caufield’s Novelties roof. It was mounted on a driving lawnmower. Note the snake coming out of his teeth then — from this website: https://ohioshaunted.com/halloweenparade010pics/

Larry Bird, the basketball player, is big in Indiana. This bust is in French Lick, IN where he played in high school:

This magician grave marker is in the Cave Hill Cemetery in Louisville:

This scrap metal sculpture entitled “I Am Your Mother” is in Jeffersonville, IN:

This Rosie the Riveter statue is in Clarksville, IN (Louisville is just across the river):

Santa Claus statues abound in Santa Claus, IN. This one is in front of the volunteer fire department:

This snowman in Santa Claus, IN was part of a fountain at a mini golf. There’s now a pizza restaurant there but I’m sure glad they are keeping this guy:

A former Phillips 66 cottage gas station in Huntingburg, IN:

The restored and now-operating Candy Castle from 1935 in Santa Claus, IN:

A fairly intact Krispy Kreme sign and building in Louisville:

A former Dog n Suds sign in Dale, IN:

This sign in Jeffersonville, IN originally had “Pawn Shop” in the middle of the text panel and those 3 gold balls associated with pawn shops on the upper right:

The 38-foot-wide former Colgate clock in Clarksville, IN was restored earlier this year with LED instead of neon:

This sign is also in Clarksville, IN:

This bowling sign in Evansville, IN originally advertised for Colonial Lanes when it opened in 1959:

It was later adapted with the smaller pin and bowling ball:

River City Recreation’s adaptation when it opened in 1988:

The Twig and Leaf restaurant sign in Louisville:

This sign is in St. Meinrad, IN:

This one is in Edwardsville, IN:

Fischer’s is in Tell City, IN:

Schimpff’s Confectionery in Jeffersonville, IN opened in 1858 and moved to this location in 1891:

Schreck’s Baxter Liquors is in Louisville. Advertisements from the late 1950s read “Look for the Winking Colonel”:

The Kaelin’s sign in Louisville was restored in 2018:

And lastly, this unique American Legion sign is in Ferdinand, IN:

Back to more Indiana for the next post.

Happy Trails,
dj & the dogs

website | blog | Flickr | Instagram

A little trip across the border into Kentucky for about a day and a half. The photos in this post are all from Louisville unless I mention otherwise.

This Ceratosaurus is at the Penn Run Golf Course. I have no idea what it’s doing there:

The Concrete Lady in Clarksville, IN has thousands of statues on-site:

Lottie the Triceratops:

A giant bat at Caufield’s Novelty:

A relaxed Lincoln:

The former Rocket Cleaner rocket. It originally had animated neon rings on top:

A five-story tall upturned bottle pours bourbon into a glass below at the Evan Williams Bourbon Experience:

The former Bernheim Distillery, a whiskey bottling plant, has been boarded up since at least 2015:

The former WHAS radio transmitter building:

A concrete hyperbolic paraboloid next to the WAVE TV station:

A former Frostop:

A former McCrory’s department store:

The two Dairy Del ice cream stands:

The Barrel of Fun ice cream stand:

The Lucky Tavern is closed but this sign remains:

Al’s Bait House is also closed but this sign remains:

This wooden sign was uncovered in 2012 and has been preserved:

The Iroquois Manor Shopping Center:

Hauck’s was originally a general store — now a bar & restaurant:

This camera store sign in the parking lot is intact…:

… while its storefront sign has been adapted at least a couple of times:

The Collier’s Court neon sign and its taller/later/former Superior Motel sign

And lastly, the restored Teamsters Union Hall sign at the back of the building in its protective cage:

Back to Indiana for the next post.

Happy Trails & Happy Thanksgiving!
dj & the dogs

website | blog | Flickr | Instagram

Let’s start with this giant cow at the Crossroad Farms Dairy in Indianapolis. Three pages of this “left-leg-forward” type at my website here: https://www.roadarch.com/critters/cowsleft.html

The Mr. Bendo in Indianapolis which used to hold a muffler:

This giant Converse sneaker is in Columbus:

This Tiffany lamp is inside the more than amazing Zaharakos Ice Cream Parlor from 1900 in Columbus:

This Poco the Oil Drop car is in Edinburgh:

Expo Bowl in Indianapolis (now a Royal Pin) has two giant pins and a nifty plastic sign:

This former Stuckey’s gas station & convenience store is in Edinburgh:

The Barton Tower apartment building is in Indianapolis:

The Oasis Diner, a 1954 Mountain View, is in Plainfield:

The Artcraft Theatre is in Franklin:

The closed Reed Drapery Service is in Indianapolis:

The former Wonder Bread plant sign is in Indianapolis:

This former Dog n Suds sign is in Indianapolis:

The Land o Nod Motel is in Franklin. The candle’s flame had two-part animation:

The Columbus Bar is in Columbus:

This sign in Columbus is from 1981:

This sign in Indianapolis remains a mystery. It is installed on the former G.C. Murphy department store building but I believe it came from somewhere else and was adapted:

This sign in Indianapolis was built and installed at the White Rabbit Cabaret in 2010:

This sign in Plainfield originally had a Superior Motel affiliation and a mass-produced plastic top panel like this one in Indianapolis:

This sign is at Mike’s Speedway Lounge in Indianapolis. It was obviously adapted from a previous business but, after much searching, I don’t know what it was:

Lastly, one of a few surviving and adapted Roselyn’s Bakery signs in Indianapolis. The sign would have looked similar to this one originally (minus the readerboard, with the little girl in the plastic panel on top). Vintage photo snagged from this webpage with the defunct bakery’s history: https://historicindianapolis.com/roselyn-bakeries/

Back soon with even more Indiana – about five more days worth.

Happy Trails,
dj & the dogs

website | blog | Flickr | Instagram