Bunker Hill Laundry
IN
Photo courtesy Emily Steele

The weathered storefront at Bunker Hill Laundry recalls the everyday businesses that once filled small-town shopping streets. It may have handled an ordinary chore, but the faded lettering and older building make it worth a closer look. Sometimes the least glamorous stops have plenty of character.

The shop’s ownership, opening date, and exact location within Indiana remain unconfirmed. Without those details, it’s difficult to establish whether this was a self-service laundry, a drop-off business, or both. The storefront offers more clues than the available written history.

UPDATE: The laundry’s current status and the building’s survival remain unknown. Anyone who recognizes the property or remembers doing business here could help put a few dates and names behind this quiet piece of Indiana’s commercial past. 07-26

RCA Victor Shop
Indianapolis, IN
Photo courtesy Emily Steele

The vintage RCA Victor Shop sign in Indianapolis recalls the days when a troublesome television went to the repair counter. Its familiar brand lettering helped customers find a place to buy electronics or keep an older set working.

RCA’s Indianapolis operations began in 1930 with radio-tube production. By 1947, the company was making television components locally, even before the city had a television station. That manufacturing history gives this neighborhood sign a connection to an industry that employed generations of Hoosiers.

UPDATE: The shop’s original business name, operating dates, and present condition remain unconfirmed. Whether the RCA Victor sign survives is also unknown. It’s a reminder of a time when replacing a tube could mean bringing the family television back to life. 07-26

Freeport Rug & Linoleum Co.
Rockford, IL
Photo courtesy Kelly Sullivan

The raised lettering at Freeport Rug & Linoleum Co. gives this downtown storefront plenty of character without a tube of neon. Originally captioned as Rockford, the business is actually in Freeport, Illinois. The name above the entrance supplies a helpful clue. 09-10

Business records date the flooring company to 1946. Its familiar façade recalls the years when independent downtown shops supplied everything needed for the home, including a new rug or kitchen floor. The straightforward lettering still makes an effective advertisement.

UPDATE: Freeport Rug & Linoleum remains listed as operating in Freeport, and the latest supplied account reports its vintage storefront sign intact. The business has carried its name through roughly eight decades, keeping a longtime flooring shop part of the downtown scene. 07-26

Albert's Jewelers (Gone)
East Chicago, IN
Photo courtesy Kevin Heggi

The vintage sign at Albert’s Jewelers gave Indiana Harbor shoppers a familiar landmark in East Chicago. Rings and watches may have brought customers inside, but the lettering outside deserved attention of its own. A neighborhood jeweler could certainly make its presence known. 10-08

Albert Rubinstein founded the business in 1905. Fred Halpern took over in 1960, and the family later expanded the company, relocating to Schererville in 2002. The move carried the business forward, although the original storefront’s sign faced a less certain future.

UPDATE: Albert’s Diamond Jewelers continues operating in Schererville. Plans once circulated to reuse the Indiana Harbor sign behind the newer store, but its eventual destination remains unconfirmed. The jewelry business survives, while the fate of its earlier roadside advertisement still needs an answer. 07-26

Clymer TV (Gone)
Vandalia, IL
Photo courtesy Richard Weiss

The bulb-lined arrow at Clymer TV pointed customers toward repairs in Vandalia, Illinois. Even weathered, it had plenty of personality. This was the sort of shop you visited when the television stopped working and buying another one wasn’t the first answer. 11-08

Lewis “Abe” Clymer operated the television and appliance business for more than 50 years. He was also known for portraying Abraham Lincoln, giving the shopkeeper another connection to Vandalia’s history. Clymer died on April 23, 2021, at age 90.

UPDATE: Clymer TV has closed. The latest supplied account places sign removal around 2024 and demolition of the building in 2025, although those dates could not be independently verified. The old arrow no longer directs customers toward the repair counter. 07-26

Jane Isbell Jewelers (Gone)
Vandalia, IL
Photo courtesy Richard Weiss

The neon diamond at Jane Isbell Jewelers gave Gallatin Street in Vandalia, Illinois, a little extra sparkle. Its shape left no doubt about the merchandise, while the lettering suited the mid-century storefront below. This was a sign worth catching after dark. 11-08

The jewelry business served the community for nearly 50 years. After it closed, Lulu’s Stuff N Such occupied the space by 2010, and the old sign stayed above the entrance. Despite talk of selling it, the display remained through several more years of changing tenants.

UPDATE: The store which dates back to the mid-century is now closed. Many thanks to Chet Wilson for update. 01-11

UPDATE: The sign was still present in 2016 but had disappeared by 2018, narrowing its removal to that period. Jane Isbell Jewelers is gone, and the diamond’s eventual destination remains unknown. The earlier account placing removal around 2016 was approximate. 07-26