email: roadarch@outlook.com

Iowa Signs (page 2)

(hit "refresh" to get the most recent version of this page; click on photos for larger images)

I.O.O.F. [gone]
Decorah, IA		 George the Chili King
Des Moines, IA		 Ricketts-All Parts [gone]
Des Moines, IA
This Independent Order of Odd Fellows sign was a projecting sign originally. The other panel was against the building when this photo was taken in 2009. The Lodge moved to a new location in 2008 and brought the sign along. I don't know if it is displayed outside.

George the Chili King opened in 1952. This sign is lit at night. For more, see this website. [map]

Ricketts-All Parts has been replaced by another appliance business. This photo was taken in 2006. The sign was removed sometime after that. [photo thanks Glenda Campbell]

Latin King Restaurant
Des Moines, IA		 Winsther Motel
De Witt, IA
The Latin King Restaurant opened in 1947. This sign might be from then or slightly later. For more, see this website. [map]

The Winsther Motel sign is probably from the 1950s. I don't know if it is lit at night. [map]

More Des Moines Signs:
Colonial Bread
Plaza Lanes [gone]
Iowa Paint [gone]
Travelers Insurance

Terrace Motel
Dubuque, IA		 Dottie's Cafe
Dubuque, IA		 Miracle Car Wash
Dubuque, IA		 Bridge Restaurant & Lounge
Dubuque, IA
The Terrace Motel sign appears to be from the 1950s or 1960s. [map]

Dottie's Cafe is still open. This sign is probably from the 1950s. [map]

The rooftop Miracle Car Wash sign probably from the 1950s. It is lit at night. For more, see this website. [map]

The Bridge Restaurant & Lounge opened in 1961. This photo is from 2009. The sign is still there but the cocktail glasses were gone by 2012. For more, see this website. [map]

More Dubuque Signs:
Busy Bee Cafe [gone]
Canfield Hotel [map]

Hardin County
Savings Bank
Eldora, IA		 Dana Bushong
Jewelers
Fort Madison, IA		 Faeth's Cigar Store
Fort Madison, IA		 Palms
Supper Club [gone]
Fort Madison, IA
This Hardin County Savings Bank sign is lit at night. The digital clock is probably a later addition or replacement of an older one or a different panel. [map]

I believe Dana Bushong Jewelers has been here since the 1910s. The neon has been removed from this sign. These Elgin Watch signs were mass-produced. The vertical piece might have been optional. For some other examples, see these websites: 1, 2, and 3. [map]

Faeth's Cigar Store features a vitrolite facade and these neon letters. The store sells hunting and fishing supplies primarily. Does anyone know what was sold here originally? [map]

The Palms Supper Club opened in 1961. This photo was taken in 2010. By 2012, the sign had been replaced with a backlit plastic sign. For more, see this website.

Grinnell Signs:
Kentucky Fried Chicken

Murray's Outdoor Store
Guttenberg, IA		 Arrowhead Bowl
Keokuk, IA		 Tee Pee Lounge
Keokuk, IA
Murray's Outdoor Store is primarily a bait and tackle store. Around 1998, the owner saw the sign at a recently closed taxidermy shop in Mount Carroll, IL. She bought the sign for about $200. The giant walleye is made of plywood and is about 16 feet long. [map]

The Arrowhead Bowl must be from the 1950s or 1960s. The neon is missing from these channel letters now. [map]

The Tee Pee Lounge has been here since at least the mid-1970s. [map]

More Guttenberg Signs:
Ford Tractor
Mercury

Pelo's Sundries
Le Claire, IA		 Lone Tree
Welcome Sign
Lone Tree, IA		 Sudbury
Court Motel
Marengo, IA		 Rose Bowl [gone]
Mason City, IA
Pelo's Sundries is still open but has developed into more of a cafe than general store. This sign is probably from the 1950s. [map]

The Lone Tree Welcome Sign was originally installed in Des Moines, IA where it advertised for the Lone Tree Motel. I don't know when it was moved here. The sign probably had neon originally. For more, see this website. [map]

The Sudbury Court Motel sign appears to be from the 1940s. [map]

The Rose Bowl opened in 1964 and this sign was from then. There was a severe fire in 2014 and the place has been closed since then. The sign was still there in 2015. By 2018, the pin was gone but the top "Rose Bowl" panel was still there.

More Mason City Signs:
Houck's Pharmacy

Masonic Temple
Marshalltown, IA		 Stone's Restaurant
Marshalltown, IA
This Masonic Temple sign is probably from the 1930s or 1940s. [map]

Stone's Restaurant opened in 1887. It closed in 2006 and reopened in 2009. It closed again about a year later. The sign is from the 1950s. These photos are from 2010. Sometime after 2013, the neon was removed and the letters were mostly painted over. For more, see this website. [map]

More Marshalltown Signs:
Coliseum

Muscatine Signs:
Cheri Top Drive-in

Cavey's Sundries
Olin, IA		 Terrible's Lakeside
Casino [gone]
Osceola, IA
The Sherwin-Williams Paint signs like this one at Cavey's Sundries were also mass-produced. There is another one like this in Springfield, OH. [map]

This Terrible's Lakeside Casino sign was built in 2005. It was 132 feet tall. Other sources say it was only 65 feet tall. There was another sign like this at the Terrible's Casino in St. Joseph, MO but I don't know if it was the same height. This photo is from 2009. By 2013, "Terrible's" was dropped from the casino's name and the sign was drastically remodeled. His head and arms were removed and the legs base had been painted gray.

IA (page 1) IA (page 3)

Main Signs Page