| Super Signage |
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| OHIO (page 1) |
| North Plaza Mall Canton, OH |
Towne Manor Motel Canton, OH |
Colonial Lanes Canton, OH |
Rainbow Lanes and Lounge Fremont, OH |
Bartlett's Old Orchard Motel Fremont, OH |
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The North Plaza Mall retains its old sign (at least for now) despite remodeling its strip of stores.
The Towne Manor uses decorative balls in its sign like many other signs from the 1950s/1960s (e.g., Gene and Boots, Slide & Ride, and The Lamp Post Café). The Colonial Lanes have been around since the 1960s. The Rainbow Lanes and Lounge features a classic ball and pin sign. Bartlett's Old Orchard Motel and sign were built around 1949. |
| Double A Motel Fremont, OH |
Skyway Drive-in Medina, OH |
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The Double A Motel features a satellite-inspired star on top. These add-on elements were popular in the 1960s. See this page for more examples.
The Skyway Drive-in chain was founded in 1952 and now has four locations. This one supposedly opened in 2001 although the sign and building look much older. The restaurant features car hops and "cruise-ins". |
| Baker's Motel Norwich, OH |
Homestead Motel Columbus, OH |
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The Baker's Motel sign previously had a star on top. For more, see this website.
The Homestead Motel has a very similar looking sign. It more than likely had a star on top as well and was produced by the same company. These motels may have been part of a chain and had the same name at one time. |
| Haas Furniture (closed) Columbus, OH |
Mirage Lounge Columbus, OH |
Capital Motel Columbus, OH |
Brookside Motel Columbus, OH |
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Haas Furniture just closed - don't know what will become of the sign.
The Mirage Lounge sign advertises for a strip club. The Capital Motel features a great sign and intact courtyard motel design. For more about this and other Ohio motels, see this website. The Brookside Motel is another hanger-on from another era. The top part of the sign apparently revolved at one time - it now just blows around in the wind. |
| Columbus Finance Columbus, OH |
Abbott's Super Duper Columbus, OH |
40 Motel Columbus, OH |
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Columbus Finance has a great sign and an equally great, complementary façade.
Abbott's Super Duper supermarket sign is from 1955. It depicts an elephant balancing a bag of groceries. At one time, Super Duper had a chain of stores in OH and western NY. Columbus has two remaining locations but I don't believe the other one has a sign like this. The 40 Motel and sign are estimated to be from the late 1950s/early 1960s. For a night photo, see this website. |
| Capri Lanes Columbus, OH |
Pierce Cleaners Columbus, OH |
Buckeye Motel Columbus, OH |
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The Capri Lanes and sign are from 1962.
Pierce Cleaners opened in 1946 and this sign is likely from then. The Buckeye Motel features a wonderful sign with the state of Ohio and the number three (referring to its location on Route 3). The motel rooms also have nice metal awnings. For a night view, see this website. In 2007, this sign was altered with the "Buckeye" portion removed and painted over. |
| Capri Lanes Dayton, OH |
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| The Capri Lanes opened in 1959 and features 36 lanes. They a freestanding sign and a rooftop sign. I don't know if they are/were related to the Capri Lanes in Columbus shown above or if it was just a common name. For more, see their website. |
| Northgate Lanes Cuyahoga Falls, OH |
Acme Food Cuyahoga Falls, OH |
Diamond Grille Akron, OH |
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Northgate Lanes features this old sign behind a wire grid (I suppose to keep birds from nesting?).
Acme Food is part of a chain. I don't know if there are other locations with this great sign. The Diamond Grille is famous for its steaks. For more, see this website. |
| City News Suzy's Smoke Room Mansfield, OH |
Park Lanes Mansfield, OH |
Party Supplies Carlisle, OH |
Black Forest Restaurant West Chester, OH |
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The City News newsstand features this nice neon oldie with a nice modern next door neighbor (the Coney Island Diner).
The Park Lanes features the classic giant pin sign. This convenience store has a festive Party Supplies rooftop sign. The store did not have an identifiable name. The Black Forest Restaurant opened in 1964. They offer German food and entertainment. This sign is actually a Maibaum (May Pole) depicting various trades. For more, see their website. |
| former Tony's Cincinnati, OH |
Chief Pontiac Cincinnati, OH |
Klein Motor Co. Cincinnati, OH |
Western Bowl Cincinnati, OH |
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This Subway has left the rusty Tony's sign intact and simply added their own below it. Not sure whether Tony's was a walk-up stand or a drive-thru.
The Chief Pontiac stands in front of MotorTime Auto Sales on "Automobile Row" (Vine Street), now mostly used car lots. The sign is 50' tall and was built in 1954. His mechanical arm used to wave to passing motorists. He was repainted in 2003 but the neon was not replaced. For more, see this website. Klein Motor Co. is another hold-out on Vine Street with a huge sign. They sell used cars but most likely originally sold new ones. The Western Bowl opened in 1958. It features 68 lanes, glow bowling and leagues. For more, see their website. [night photo thanks George Feinthel] |
| Young & Bertke Air Systems Co. Cincinnati, OH |
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Young & Bertke, a metal fabricating business, was founded in 1920. The company refers to their sign's tin man as "YouBert", an abbreviation of Young & Bertke. The sign was built in 1926 and was visible from the upper deck of the former Cincinnati Reds' baseball park, Crosley Field. The company relocated during construction of I-75 and rebuilt the sign. This sign was then destroyed in a storm. The current sign was constructed in 1985. YouBert's animated, walking legs stopped working around 2005 but were restored in 2008. The 18 1/2 foot tall sign operates continuously 24 hours/7 days a week. It is estimated that YouBert covers over 10,000 miles per year. Here's a short video of him in motion. For more, see these websites: 1, 2, and 3. [photos thanks George Feinthel] |
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