Wrigley's Goddard Grocer Building
Hannibal, MO Photo courtesy Richard Weiss
Here is a picture I took of an old Wrigley's ghost sign on the side of a The Goddard Grocer building in Hannibal, MO back in the Spring of 2006. I was standing on the levee when I took this. A few days ago, I was watching the news and they showed this place with water lapping at the sign! If you look at the door to the left, you can see the water had to be about eight feet deep at this point. Many thanks to Richard Weiss for info. 07-08
Hannibal's wholesale grocery businesses supplied merchants throughout the surrounding region, making warehouses near river and rail transportation especially useful. The painted chewing-gum advertisement added another commercial message to the brickwork, eventually becoming more interesting as its colors weathered and faded.
UPDATE: The building and Wrigley's ghost sign have been reported as surviving along the riverfront, although their latest condition hasn't been independently confirmed. The flood account adds another chapter to a wall that has witnessed considerably more than changing advertising fashions. 07-26
Webster Cigars (Gone)
Detroit, MI Photo courtesy Richard Weiss
Here are a few pictures from July 2008 showing an old ghost sign for Webster Cigars on an abandoned building in a forgotten part of Detroit. It is in fact one of the most elaborate ghost signs seen anywhere. Many thanks to Richard Weiss for info. 07-08
Even after years of neglect, the artwork still stood out. Unlike many ghost signs that are little more than faded lettering, this one was full of personality. It looked more like a giant mural than a simple advertisement, making it a favorite among photographers and anyone who appreciated old painted signs.
Webster Cigars (Gone)
Detroit, MI Photo courtesy Richard Weiss
Sadly, the building didn't survive. After years of sitting vacant and falling into disrepair, it was demolished, taking one of Detroit's finest ghost signs with it. Fortunately, photographs like these preserve what was once one of the city's true roadside treasures.
UPDATE: The building is gone, and the Webster Cigars ghost sign disappeared with it. It's a reminder that these old painted signs won't be around forever, making every photograph that much more important. 07-26
Here are some ghost signs from around the old Tiger Stadium area of Detroit.
Beeman's Gum / Detroit Athletic Club (Gone)
Detroit, MI Photo courtesy Richard Weiss
Here's the Beeman's Gum / Detroit Athletic Club lettering near old Tiger Stadium in Detroit. The faded paint and old-fashioned wording made these walls worth a closer look, especially when trying to sort genuine advertisements from later additions. 07-08
Tiger Stadium did serve as Yankee Stadium for the HBO film 61*, shot in 2000 and released in 2001. However, a movie connection for these particular signs hasn't been independently established. The real Detroit Athletic Club has a separate history: its Albert Kahn-designed clubhouse opened in 1915, rather than 1921, and stands near Comerica Park.
UPDATE: Tiger Stadium's demolition was completed in 2009, but that alone doesn't establish what happened to signs on neighboring buildings. The lettering's origin and present condition remain uncertain. An exact address would help settle this intriguing piece of ballpark-area history. 07-26
Miles Theatre (Gone)
Detroit, MI Photo courtesy Richard Weiss
Here's the faded Miles Theatre advertisement near Detroit's old Tiger Stadium. Its weathered lettering certainly looked at home among the aging buildings around the ballpark, offering another reason to look up while exploring the neighborhood.
The name belonged to a real downtown theater, which opened on Griswold Street on May 15, 1910. That gives the advertisement a genuine Detroit connection, although the claim that this particular wall was painted for HBO's 61* hasn't been verified. The film used Tiger Stadium in 2000, but its presence doesn't automatically make every nearby painted sign a movie prop.
UPDATE: The sign's current status remains unconfirmed. Tiger Stadium disappeared in 2009, but without identifying the wall itself, its demolition shouldn't be treated as proof that this advertisement vanished too. The theater connection is documented; the movie-set story still needs support. 07-26
Ralston (Gone)
Detroit, MI Photo courtesy Richard Weiss
Here's the faded Ralston advertisement found near Tiger Stadium in Detroit. The worn paint and large lettering had the appearance that makes old wall signs so interesting—you could easily walk past, then turn around for another look. 07-08
The supplied history connects the advertisement with HBO's 61*, filmed at Tiger Stadium during summer 2000. The ballpark stood in for Yankee Stadium during the story of Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle's 1961 home-run chase. That production is well documented, but the origin of this individual Ralston sign hasn't been independently confirmed.
UPDATE: Tiger Stadium's demolition ended in 2009. Whether this advertisement occupied the stadium itself or a nearby building needs clarification before calling it lost with the ballpark. For now, both its movie connection and present status remain unresolved. 07-26
Tates Tires
Toledo, OH Photo courtesy Richard Weiss
This ghost sign located on this wall in Toledo, OH is for Tates Tires. Not sure if this is the original name or if it stands for something else like States Tires. Many thanks to Richard Weiss for info. 08-08
The likely original wording is “United States Tires,” a brand advertised in Toledo by the early 1910s. As paint disappears unevenly, parts of familiar names can become convincing new ones. Without the surrounding letters, “Tates Tires” seems a reasonable reading—and a good example of why ghost signs sometimes need a little detective work.
UPDATE: The sign has been reported as surviving, but its latest condition and exact original wording remain unconfirmed. Continued weathering may reveal older paint or erase more lettering, giving this unusual wall advertisement a slightly different appearance with each passing year. 07-26
Roy Bennett Furniture (Closed)
Quincy, IL Photo courtesy Richard Weiss
Here's Roy Bennett Furniture in Quincy, Illinois, with its old building and sign still part of the downtown scene. The familiar name represented generations of furniture shopping, long before ordering a sofa meant scrolling through a website. 09-08
Robert Leroy “Roy” Bennett founded the business in 1914. As a young man, he bicycled from Payson to Quincy to work in a furniture store before establishing his own company. Five generations eventually participated in the family business, and customers remembered riding its antique lift between showroom floors at 311 Maine Street.
UPDATE: Roy Bennett Furniture closed in 2024 after 110 years. Its history includes several kinds of storefront advertising; the prominent exterior sign was documented as gone by 2025. The present condition of the painted wall lettering shown here hasn't been confirmed. 07-26
Wrigley's Goddard Grocer Building
Webster Cigars (Gone)
Webster Cigars (Gone)
Beeman's Gum / Detroit Athletic Club (Gone)
Miles Theatre (Gone)
Ralston (Gone)
Tates Tires
