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Montana Signs (page 1)

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Barclay II Supper Club & Lounge
Anaconda, MT
Wagons West Motel
Augusta, MT
Heiser's Bar & Casino
Baker, MT
The Barclay II Supper Club & Lounge opened around 1981. In the 1970s, the building housed Gil's Gourmet House. I don't know what was here originally but this sign might be from the 1960s. [map]

The Wagons West Motel sign is probably from the 1950s. [map]

Heiser's Bar & Casino opened in 1933. The sign might be a replica of a 1950s or 1960s sign. The original probably did not have channel letters. [map]

More Anaconda:
Club Moderne
Copper Bowl
J.F.K. Bar [gone]

Timber Bar
Big Timber, MT
The Timber Bar was established in 1957 and this sign appears to be from then. For more, see these websites: 1 and 2. [map]

More Big Timber:
City Club Lanes

Stuart's
House of Vacuums [gone]
Billings, MT
1145 Club
Billings, MT
Stuart's House of Vacuums featured old vacuums mounted on poles. This photo is from 2006. The vacuums were still there in 2011 but gone by 2013. For more, see this website.

The 1145 Club opened in 1960 and these signs appear to be from then. [map]

Muzzle Loader Cafe
& Lounge [gone]
Billings, MT
Parkway Motel
Billings, MT
A Few Books More
Billings, MT
Billings Livestock Commission [gone]
Billings, MT
The Muzzle Loader Cafe & Lounge sign must have been recently restored when this photo was taken in 2006. However, by 2008 this sign was gone and replaced with a backlit plastic sign. For more, see these websites: 1 and 2.

The Parkway Motel was built in 1951 and this sign is probably from then. There are nearly identical signs at the Corral Motel in Harlowton, MT and the Pine Creek Lodge in Livingston, MT. For more, see these websites: 1 and 2. [map]

A Few Books More features this lightning bolt and some giant books above their store. The lightning bolt was built for Yellowtone Electric which previously occupied the space. After that, the building housed Creative Lighting. [map]

The Billings Livestock Commission's sign is installed right next to I-90. This photo is from 2008. Sometime after 2015, the neon and the cow on top of the sign were removed. The letters are now backlit plastic. For more, see this website. [map]

Oasis Bar [gone]
Billings, MT
Western Wheel Liquor [gone]
Billings, MT
The Oasis Bar had opened by 1950. This sign is probably from the 1950s. It looked like it had been closed for a while when this photo was taken in 2006. It was still vacant in 2011. In 2017, the sign was sold to a private collector who plans to display it in his conference space at Henry's Garage. For more, see this website.

These photos of the Western Wheel Liquor sign are from 2006. In 2012, the bar was still open and the sign was still there. By 2015, the building was vacant and the upper sign was gone. It is now part of the private collection at Henry's Garage. The wheel and the letters below were gone by 2017. For more, see these websites: 1 and 2.

McCormick Cafe
Billings, MT
Town House Motel [gone]
Billings, MT
The McCormick Cafe opened in 1998 and this sign was built then. For more, see this website. [map]

The Town House Motel featured a wall sign and a freestanding pole sign. These photos are from 2006. By 2009, the signs were gone. The motel had been renamed the Bourbon Street Hotel Tower III. For more, see this website.

Tap Inn
Billings, MT
New Hotel Carlin
Billings, MT
Dude Rancher Lodge
Billings, MT
The Tap Inn opened in 1953. This sign is probably from then. The sign pole is dressed as a jousting pole behind the shield-shaped text panel. [map]

The New Hotel Carlin was built in 1910. There was originally a horizontal projecting sign and a rooftop sign. This sign is probably from the 1930s or 1940s. [map]

The Dude Rancher Lodge was built in 1950. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The text sign on the left was originally installed on the front of the building. It is now at the back of the building facing the parking lot. The lantern is probably from the 1960s. There were a couple of signs which are gone now: 1 and 2. [map]

Rainbow Bar
Billings, MT
Empire Bar
Billings, MT
Moose Lodge
Billings, MT
The Rainbow Bar opened in 1935. The bar's name comes from the story that a man was selling Rainbow Bar and Silver Dollar Bar signs from the back of his truck. The owner bought a Rainbow Bar sign and identical signs were used in Roundup and Hilger, MT, as well as Sheridan, WY. The one in Hilger was removed recently. There are other Rainbow signs in Roundup and Sheridan, but they may have been replaced. For more, see this website. [map]

The Empire Bar opened in 1935 and closed in 2006. I believe this sign was located at the back entrance. It might have been built in the 1950s or 1960s. The sign is now installed inside Western Pawnbrokers.

The Moose Lodge billboard style sign might be from the 1950s or 1960s. This sign must have been at a downtown location. [map]

Crystal Lounge
Billings, MT
Yellowstone Electric Co.
Billings, MT
The Crystal Lounge opened in 1946 and this sign is probably from then. For more, see this website. [map]

The Yellowstone Electric Co. was established in 1937 and was originally located downtown. This sign might be from the 1950s. It was repainted around 2010. The sign previously had a yellow background with red letters. The neon was replaced sometime after 2012 with LED rope. For more, see this website. [map]

Monte Carlo Casino
Billings, MT
Peter Yegen Jr. Insurance & Realtors
Billings, MT
The Monte Carlo Casino opened in the late 1940s or early 1950s. The sign on the left is probably from then. I believe the sign on the right was installed in 2022 after the building was remodeled. In 2015, the word "Carlo" was dropped after pressure from the Principality of Monaco which had tradedmarked the same name. Therefore, the bottom panel has been covered up and the official name is now the Monte Bar & Casino. [map]

Peter Yegen Jr. Insurance & Realtors was established in 1919. The company moved to its current location in 1954. This sign is probably from then. For more, see this website. [map]

Rex Hotel
Billings, MT
OPEN arrow
Billings, MT
The Rex Bar opened around 1909. Around 1917, the third floor of the building was converted into the Rex Hotel. The hotel closed in 1974. This sign is probably from the late 1920s or 1930s. The sign was restored around 2019. This photo is from 2022. For more, see this website. [map]

This OPEN arrow is located at Big Sky Coffee Roasters. The building was constructed as the Minute Market in 1968 and the sign might have been installed then. These flashing bulb signs were mass-produced by Superior Electrical Advertising in Long Beach, CA and were installed all over the country. [map]

Aldrich Lumber Co.
Billings, MT

2006:

2022:
The Aldrich Lumber Co. was founded around 1920. This store opened in 1938 and moved in 2011. The waving "JoeDoit" pole sign was probably built in the 1950s. It was supposedly moved to the new store. However, not only does this sign not have neon but the panels have a different shape. From the plastic box sign below it, I suspect that this sign was not on public view in 2006 and it might have been built in the 1960s. I don't think the neon text panel or the smaller, pennant-carrying signs were saved. For more, see these websites: 1, 2, 3, and 4. [map]

More Billings:
17 Bar & Club [vintage; gone]
Amusement Park Drive-in
Al Bedoo Shrine [gone]
Bair's Gas for Less [vintage; gone]
Casey's Golden Pheasant [private collection]
Center Lanes & Lounge [gone]
Fuller Hotel [inside Western Pawnbrokers]
Lazy K-T Motel [gone]
Spur Bar [vintage; gone]
Standard Bar [vintage; gone]
Sunset Bowl
Supersonic Car Wash [vintage; gone]

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