Glorious sun for today’s shooting. This one in Murray is a new sign but very cool:

This one in Salt Lake City might not be around much longer. In 2019, a proposal was announced to demolish the motel and build a big residential/commercial complex. I didn’t see this sign in the plans at all. But maybe things have fallen through:

More stuff from Salt Lake City… With city permission, a smaller replica of the original sign from 1950s was created by Rainbow Neon:

In 2019, this sign was declared too unsafe and beyond maintaining. The original sign was shipped off to the Railroad Museum in Ogden and this sign was created. It’s double-sided like it was originally but lit with LED instead of neon:

This Park ‘N Jet sign with sputnik has gotta be 1960s:

There are a few Village Cleaners signs in the SLC area using some variation of this logo. This one is in Murray. I think we can assume from the round shape and stripes that these signs are a tribute to the Norgetown “Norge Ball” signs. Norgetown signs with stripes were the later versions of the polka dot signs. Loads of info and examples at my website section here:

https://www.roadarch.com/signs/norge.html

Speaking of polka dots. This pylon sign in Salt Lake City originally advertised for a Safeway. It was later adapted for Hostess Brands/Wonder Bread. Those polka dots were associated with Wonder Bread all the way back to 1921 when the VP of merchandising was inspired by a Balloon Race at the Indy Motor Speedway. Anyway, the neon had been missing for years but was restored by Furst when they moved into the building in 2014. They left the original corrugated material and faded paint and just added their own name to the sign:

Lots more from Salt Lake City. The Classic Lanes opened in 1958. Here’s a photo I took in 2006:

In 2015, the bowling alley closed and was demolished. The sign was preserved and adapted with LED for the apartments built on the site in 2015:

This Fendall’s Ice Cream sign is probably from 1957 or thereabouts. It closed in 1997 but the sign escaped being messed with until last year when it was adapted for this pizza place:

Speaking of ice cream. This Snelgrove Ice Cream sign was built by YESCO in 1962. Here’s a photo I took in 2006:

In 1990, Dreyer’s bought the company and used the site for ice cream production. Little by little, the sign deteriorated — hit by a truck, then repainted, then Dreyer’s left and their signs were removed… and we are left with the photo below. The site is a vacant lot right now but I know that the Sugar House historical people will not let anything happen to the cone:

Some happy news. This bulb sign originally advertised for the West Side Drug store. Here’s a photo I took in 2014:

The building had long been vacant and was about to be demolished when this piece was removed, restored, and installed at the Red Iguana 2 Mexican restaurant. I posted a little video of the bulbs in action here:
https://www.instagram.com/p/CefgkCslcXm/

This place opened in 1968 and I’m betting the bulb piece on top is from then:

One more sign — this one from Bountiful:

Let’s close with some statues. This half “Muffler Man” is installed on the roof of Rainbow Neon in Salt Lake City. He was remodeled as Spock when Leonard Nimoy died in 2015. He is currently masked-up for COVID.

This wood-carved “Captain EZ” is located in Vernal:

Lastly, one of my favorite Indian statues. This one was in Roosevelt originally where he sat in front of the Moqui Trading Post. He was built in 1976 — and this postcard is from around then:

He was in pretty rough shape when I shot him in 2012:

Then, in 2018, he was adopted by the the Ute Indian Tribe. The statue was restored and moved to the Ute Tribal Plaza in Fort Duchesne:

That’s a wrap. I’ll be back soon with stuff from Idaho. Don’t be forgetting that I post different photos over at Flickr from these trips:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/agilitynut/

Happy trails,
dj & the dogs

A discouraging day which was mostly cloudy with a little rain. But I persevered through this part of Wyoming at my usual fast face since I couldn’t wait around which would mean canceling stops at the end of the trip.

Here’s a two-fer from Evanston. I don’t know if the wood on both signs is just to hold them together or if there is hope of some restoration:

Also in Evanston — no neon here but still some lovely raised letters and script:

This place in Evanston is a historic Lincoln Highway Landmark but boarded up since forever:

The pole sign from the same place – barely readable but incredible nonetheless:

Jackson was one big cloud — better luck next time… This sign hasn’t changed a hardly a bit since this 1960s postcard (except the AAA and Color TV signs are gone):

This nice script sign is in Riverton:

This Elks Lodge is also in Riverton:

Momentary sun — this one is in Lander. The photo below is probably a 1960s replacement of the sign in this postcard:

I wonder what was on those spikes?

This sign in Rawlins is shaped like a giant motel room key (remember, before we used plastic access cards?). No postcards that I could find but I’m betting there was neon on the key and maybe different text. Note that this one still has the vacuum form Color TV sign at the bottom:

A vitrolite storefront in Rawlins, I think from 1935. Probably a jewelry or clothing store but I’ve never been able to figure it out. I just looked at dozens of downtown pcards but can’t find it either:

I shot the terrazzo apron in 2012 without the mat in the way:

Pretty beat but here’s another sign from Rawlins:

This one is in Kemmerer — used as apartments now. I’m a sucker for signs with lanterns:

Also Kemmerer. The neon’s been removed and so has the plastic circle with the deer (that partial circle on the panel). Purple is an interesting paint color — previously red and black. I love a deliberately leaning sign. Does that instinctively catch the driver’s attention as if it were possibly a falling object?:

Another one from Lander. They’ve added rustic log-like stuff to the facade on the left since I was here 10 years ago. Note how the pheasant’s tail is used to make the middle stroke of the “H”. And the fishie is used for the “O” in “LODGE”:

This one in Sheridan breaks my heart. Here’s what it looked like in 2012:

The neon stars and rays were removed around 2019:

Here’s one from Dubois. This place is closed so… shoot ’em while you can folks. It was established in 1889:

Those of you that are familiar with my website know that I shoot a LOT more than just signs. Most of the followers of this blog and my Flickr account are signs geeks, so, I usually focus on those. But let’s throw a few more photos into the mix for this post.

A couple of statues. This bronze statue of James Cash Penney (the founder of J.C. Penney stores) is now in Kemmerer. It was installed in the lobby of the headquarters in Plano, TX since around 1992. I think his legs are short (and arms so long) to compensate that he was meant to be seen from up on top of pedestal. Much like the Birmingham Vulcan statue. The Plano office closed and the statue was moved here last year. The still-operating (!) JC Penney store in Kemmerer was the very first one and this statue is installed in the little park across the street:

This fiberglass Sumo Wrestler statue in Rawlins is one of a few in Wyoming and Colorado built for Sapporo Japanese Steak Houses. I think this Ichiban Japanese Steakhouse got this guy from a closed location:

This theatre in Lander is still plugging away. It seemed like every theatre I saw on this trip was showing Top Gun:

A former Safeway in Lander:

And two gas stations froms Rawlins. This building was recently restored as a Texaco (which I believe it was originally) with pumps & signs added:

Pouring rain but here’s a very rare former double-canopy Phillips 66 that sat empty for many years. Now housing Union Wireless and a little cafe:

That’s enough for now. The next post will cover lots of Utah things.

Happy trails,
dj & the dogs

The trip continues — scurrying through a few states that I’ve covered pretty thoroughly more recently before to get to the states that I haven’t been to in about 10 years (MT, WY, SD, ND, NE, etc.). The weather was sucky for a couple of days — mostly clouds but there would be sunny days to come.

There’s been a lots of restoration and recreation in Helper lately so I definitely wanted to get some shots there. I’ll have to go back in a few years in the sun.

The neon on the Hillcrest Motel sign has been restored but the patina left intact. Look at that lovely beaded border! The neon at the Strand Theatre next door was also restored. Here’s a night photo:

https://www.facebook.com/248504548950577/posts/the-newly-restored-hillcrest-hotel-sign-on-main-street/606694539798241/

Some new stuff was also added to this little strip of Main Street:

and:

I’m pretty sure these ghost signs are “imaginative” rather than restorations:

Some of the other rusty vintage signs have been left as-is:

It was certainly the wrong time of day and weather for this one but I’ll share it anyway. This is on the roof of a long closed restaurant in Wanship:

This place (AAA Lakeside Storage) in Provo has one of the largest gas station sign collections that I’ve ever seen — this is just a sampling:

The nicest sign in Echo (the Kozy Motel & Cafe) is gone now but I’m glad these two are still there:

The Riverside Ranch RV Park Motel & Campground in Hatch has an adapted Best Western crown sign on top of its box sign. They’ve added the little snowy mountain with a river (at least that’s what I think it is):

This sign which I shot in Springfield, MO shows you the original look:

I should mention my traveling companions (four lucky terriers). They got to run all over the place but they also greatly enjoyed watching the wildlife from the confines of the van: bison, elk, moose, deer, and, of course, cows. I was on the lookout for prairie dogs since that’s one of their favorite sports. But I only saw one field of them in Colorado so I let the dogs run their asses off trying to catch them. Honestly, I think the prairie dogs enjoy it just as much since they always “win” knowing where all their hidey holes are. Here’s Orbit and Dilly:

That’s it for now. I’ll be back with Day 3 soon which covers more Utah and some Wyoming.

Happy trails,
dj & the dogs

Here we go! I returned home from this 33-day trip a few days ago with another 4,000+ photos for the website (roadarch.com). As I add each day’s batch to the site, I’ll be posting a sampling of photos here to this blog and to Flickr (different photos both places). The weather was mostly cooperative and I powered through Utah, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, and Colorado. I ran out of time in Colorado so I’ll pick up where I left off in that state next year. Let’s get to it.

I made a pitstop in Amboy, CA to shoot the repainted Roy’s Motel/Cafe sign and shot this guy which I don’t think I had noticed before. The school closed in 1999 but this sign remains:

From Yermo, CA — this Crazy Horse sculpture is located in the Liberty Sculpture Park:

Let’s move on to some Las Vegas stuff. Unfortunately, this sign was partly shaded by the trees but I still love the cars, shapes, etc.:

The bottom panel must have been hit by a truck at some point:

The Milan Bakery sign is pretty rough but still worth shooting. The building originally housed the Salvation Army in 1952. So, I assume the sign (which must have had neon) was built then since the bakery didn’t move in until 1966. I’d love to see what this sign looked like originally. The bakery’s been closed since 2010:

This one was also shot at the wrong time of day (bad shadows) and I’ll try to reshoot it next year. It was recently restored:

Another one with some irritating shows. The perfect time of day to shoot it… but alas that freaking streetlamp:

The Fong’s Garden sign is still there, thank god:

The original sign was spectacular (yes, the entrance structure on the left is also gone):

This Flickr photo shows what the later sign looked like with backlit plastic & neon:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/roadsidepictures/526815907/

This long-vacant gas station from 1931 has been really jazzed up with paint:

The Dino’s Lounge sign is from 1962 (still operating):

This one was painted red and white earlier this year (was blue and gold previously):

This place opened last year:

I had enough energy to scoot into St. George, UT and get a few night shots – including this modern sign at the Pasta Factory:

That’s enough for now. I’ll be back in a week or so with more Utah photos.

Happy trails,
dj & the dogs

This was my last little practice trip before the June five-weeker. Gator ran great for the 2419 miles, mostly in the mountains, forests and tiny towns. The dogs and I were exhausted but I guess we are now ready for the biggie. I’m going to lump this sampling of photos into one post.

It’s hard to believe that this Plymouth Chrysler sign in Martinez is still there. I don’t know if there are any others left.

In 2011, there were still blue plastic letters on the building for the dealership (gone now):

I got to check out the new home of this sign in San Jose at the right time of day. It’s now at History Park:

This rock, paper, scissors sculpture in Los Altos is entitled “Conversation Peace:”

This adapted clock sign is in St. Helena. It may have been built for Ray’s Place which was there by 1956. Ana’s has been here since at least the 1980s:

These “Happy Goats” are sipping wine at Four Seasons Vineyard Management in Geyserville:

This photographer goat is also at the same place but I could not find a way to shoot him without the chain link in the way:

The Barrel Man in Geyserville used to hold a bottle in his right hand (yes, this is wine country):

It was raining when I took this photo in Mad River:

I was happy to see that the pole sign in Eureka is still in the back behind Bob’s Fine Cars. Although it’s sad that it’s still laying there. I don’t the city will let them reinstall it. It was in front of the business until it fell over around 2014.

This is what it looked like in 2008 (this side didn’t have bulbs):

This sign in Eureka had neon until around 2017:

This is what it looks like now:

This sign is also in Eureka. The fog made the peeling paint look even more dreary. But maybe you like that?

This former motor court is in Weaverville:

This sign in Shasta Lake is at the Oasis Fun Center had different letter panels originally. They read “GOLF” with the word “Mini” above the G:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/rickele/8671768056/

This sign is in Mount Shasta. Although the paint is pretty “peely”, it looks like the neon is intact:

Let’s do some sign details. This sign is also in Mount Shasta — at the Veteran’s Club. The bulbs have little plastic caps over them:

This detail is from the Shasta Lodge sign in Redding:

One more detail — from the Yreka Welcome Sign in Yreka. The R and the K still have these metal projections from when the sign hung downtown from 1917-1934. In 1977, it was finally brought out of storage and put at its current location. I’m glad they left the two little hangers. This is one of the best examples of Federal Electric sectional signs:

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

More dreary weather towards the end of this trip. This sign is in Portola:

This cute sign is also in Portola:

This one is in Quincy:

And, lastly, this sweet walk-up ice cream and burger stand from 1962 is also in Quincy:

This blog will be quiet until July when we get home and I start putting the photos together. I’m now starting to add all the photos from this weekend to my website. You might want to check out the Flickr photos that I posted from this trip (different from these at this blog post):

https://www.flickr.com/photos/agilitynut/

Happy trails,
dj & the dogs

Now back to this final section of website updates. This has been a long slog and it gets longer every year. But I consider it a responsibility to keep my website as current as possible. Even though doing this for more than 2700 pages every year is pretty nuts.

This will be a quickie post to finish things off. The mcm section is nearly 500 pages but I only have a few more places to mention.

The former Hill Top Motel in Belmar, NJ (later Rodeway Inn) is gone now:

These signs had been replaced around 2010:

This motel in Reno, NV is gone now. The sign was saved by a collector for possible display in town later on:

After two fires in 2019, the Memorial Drive Church of Christ in Tulsa, OK was demolished in 2020:

In 2021, this building in Tulsa at the Tulsa Tech’s Lemley Campus was also demolished:

The Shandon Florist building in Columbia, SC was demolished in 2020:

And that’s it!!!! The next posts will be more positive (stuff that still exists) but you won’t hear from me for a few weeks. I’ll be doing a little Northern California 4-day trip in early May and I’ll post some photos here then after that. Then, this blog will be very quiet until I get home in July from the June mega trip (five weeks in Wyoming, Montana, the Dakotas, etc.).

In closing, a few reminders. You can always find earlier blog posts here by clicking on the back arrow links in the yellow area below the posts. Or in the brown area below that, you can go back thru the archives by month. I just realized I’ve been doing these posts since 2006!

And don’t forget about the Flickr stuff — I post about 10 photos per roadtrip day there (different from the photos here at these blog posts).

https://www.flickr.com/photos/agilitynut/

And then, if your an Instagram fan, you might want to tag along in early May and then in June since I post a few photos every night there when I’m on the road.

https://www.instagram.com/roadarch_com/

Happy trails,
dj & the dogs

Back to some photos from this past weekend’s trip. Let’s start with Andy’s Donut Stop in Richmond. This cute sign is gone now (replaced with more retro style plastic panels, see below):

There was a similar painted sign on the side of the building:

But! The store added some fancy raised letters on the front and side of the building AND a giant donut later last year and/or earlier this year. I guess they dropped the “Stop” from their name (and the cute donut-shaped stop sign shown above from their branding):

This clock sign in San Francisco has been painted over for many years. It was probably a jewelry store sign originally:

This sign in San Francisco‘s Chinatown had ghost Chinese characters above the business name (whatever that was originally):

A couple of years ago, it was painted over — here’s the current look:

The Kaye’s Footwear sign, next door to the sign above, was also repainted that same green color at the same time. I suspect it’s the same building owner having all the signs repainted. Usually, new paint is a good thing — but not when it wipes out the history and detail of the original patina. This sign on the corner of the same building might have been green, brown, and gold originally. I’m sure the letters and characters were also painted on the panel behind the neon:

And here’s the current look.

The wrong time of day to shoot this sign in San Francisco — but here it is anyway:

Speaking of repainting… this sign in San Francisco also got hit with green paint. I don’t know what the original color was but here’s the look until just a few weeks ago:

and now… I’m not sure how I feel about the bright green but the indisputable good news is that the neon was restored by Jim Rizzo of NeonWorks:

This sign in Oakland was built for Glenn’s Hot Dogs by 1961:

Glenn’s closed in 2016 and the sign was adapted for this BBQ place. Too bad about the dimpled panel with stick on letters (above):

Then, last year it was adapted again for Ghost Town Brewing. I can report that the middle panel revolves as it did originally:

I finally got these two signs for the Capri Motel in San Francisco in better light:

The vitrolite panels and glass block facade for Concord Jewelers from 1946 in Concord have been preserved. Here’s the before:

But there’s something very sad about wings and burger businesses:

Last shot/stop on this trip was in Lathrop to shoot this giant John Cerney-like painted mural sign at the Dell Osso Family Farm. The place was closed but that didn’t stop me from crossing behind the closed gate to shoot it. I was treated to all kinds of trespassing alarms and a recording saying something like the police had been called. Oh well…

I’ll be adding the photos from this trip to my website now. Then, hopefully, I can wrap up the mid-century modern building section updates post before the May and June trips.

Happy trails,
dj & the dogs

This is the first of two little four-day California weekend trips to roadtest Gator to make sure she is ready for the big summer trip. There will be another four-day, Northern California trip in May.

Let’s start with this cute and cheery sign in Orcutt:

This nifty sign in Santa Maria has, yes, a fun saguaro but also corrugated plastic (fiberglass?) panels and stick-on letters which are getting really rare now. Usually, the letters fall off and these guys get replaced with flat, backlit plastic panels.

This rusty-crusty sign is in Fresno:

Another long-neglected sign in Fresno:

If you didn’t know by now, the Big Star Motel sign in Fresno:

… had its neon and bulbs removed and was repainted last year:

This sign is in Visalia. I’m puzzled by what the bottom panel read:

I believe this sign in Bakersfield was painted earlier this year:

I’m a big fan of train cars converted to restaurants (loads of them at my website). Here’s one in Half Moon Bay:

Let’s close this post with a welcome arch sign in Castroville (Gator on the left says “hi” – and Orbit poses on the dash):

Back real soon with more.

Happy trails,
dj & the dogs

This is a short post which was interrupted for a little 4-day weekend trip to the Bay Area. I’m about halfway through this section and will resume with another post after a Bay Area interruption post (coming up real soon).

This monolithic dome in Denver, CO was built in the early 1970s. It was demolished last year:

Good news/bad news: Knightley’s Parking Garage from 1949 in Wichita, KS:

has been restored. The front part of the building and sign look great. But the back side with the portholes and curved walls that conceal spiral parking ramps is barely visible now since it’s shoved right up against a new building:

This bank in Gautier, MS was demolished last year:

This motel in Meridian, MS was also demolished last year:

It had this neat little structure for access to the second floor on the side of the longer building with motel rooms:

These buildings at the Crossroads Mall in Omaha, NE were demolished last year:

Back to this section very soon.

Happy trails,
dj & the dogs

My website update posts will have a few interruptions with some roadtrip posts. I took a little 3-day weekend trip to the L.A. a couple of weeks ago and now have all of those photos up at my website. I’ll share a few photos here.

The VFW Post sign in Burbank:

The Sou’s Shoe Repair sign in Burbank…

was reworked a bit last year. Yes, the old look was nicer. Now there are vinyl sheets stuck on the sign and tacky LED crap around the borders. But, okay, it could be worst (i.e., a rectangular plastic box sign):

I made a pit stop at MONA (Museum of Neon Art) in Glendale and got to see a few recent arrivals and other things that had been brought out of storage. The La Palma Chicken Pie Shop sign that was in Anaheim is looking great:

The Dave’s Coffee Shop (from Oakland, CA) and the Hollywood Athletic Club signs are now in a little sign garden area next to the museum:

The House of Spirits signs from Echo Park are there as well:

Back on the road… the former Main Library in Riverside is being adapted for the Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art & Culture. It has incredible basket-weave concrete panels:

A new sculpture has been installed in Dana Point — finally, a woman! That’s Joyce Hoffman:

This building in Redlands was built in 1967 for Tossie’s Chicken-to-Go restaurant:

This horse in Fontana was recently repainted (previously brown). It stands in front of a Mexican restaurant. There is an identical horse at another Mexican place in Victorville:

I can’t find anything about the history of this building in El Monte but it packs a lot of fun in a small space:

I love this detailed painted mural on the side of a car repair place in South Gate:

This lovely sign is in San Pedro:

A couple shots from the fabulous Golf N’ Stuff in Norwalk from 1969:

A still-operating JC Penney in Huntington Park:

A fake lighthouse in Long Beach — the Lions Lighthouse:

A Tiki style eyeglass place in South Gate:

and a mid-century Mexican place across the street. I love the sloping roof and the layered roof/leaning sign over the entrance:

The wonderful neon sign at the Foster’s Freeze in Torrance…:

was replaced last year with this plastic version. I’m still pissed but I guess it could have been worse:

I shot a LOT of car washes this weekend since so many have been repainted, changed names, been remodeled. If mid-century car washes are your thing, I’ve got five packed pages here:

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

The sign and fins at the Five Points Hand Car Wash (now named Googie Car Wash) in Whittier have been painted many different colors in recent years. Here’s the latest look:

That’s a wrap for now. I’m still working on the final website update section (mid-century modern buildings). It’s the biggest section so it’s taking some time. But I’ll be back soon since I have a couple of 4-day weekend trips coming up: Central CA/Bay Area in April and Northern CA in May. Then, the big trip to Wyoming, Montana, Dakotas, etc. in June.

Happy trails,
dj & the dogs