Lytle Signs
Twin Falls, ID
Photo courtesy Dave & Debra van Hulsteyn

Check out the sweeping arrow at Lytle Signs in Twin Falls, Idaho. It's a fitting advertisement for a company whose business is helping other businesses get noticed. The oversized pointer gives the marquee plenty of roadside personality before you even read the name. 10-06

Ray and Florence Lytle founded the company in 1948, starting with a small neon-sign business. The arrow sign is thought to date from the 1950s or 1960s, making it a reminder of the company's early decades in the trade.

UPDATE: Lytle Signs continues operating as an employee-owned company. The old arrow survived the closure of its former location and was later documented installed behind the newer shop. Good to see a sign maker keeping a piece of its own advertising history. 06-26

Clothiers (Closed)
Mountain Home, ID
Photo courtesy Dave & Debra van Hulsteyn

This old Clothiers storefront in Mountain Home, Idaho, advertised clothing and shoes with a little Main Street flair. The two-color “SHOES” lettering recalls the familiar look of older shoe-store signs, giving an otherwise straightforward storefront something worth a second glance. 10-06

Mountain Home had a longtime clothing business called Hub Clothiers, purchased by Frank and Dolly Sherer in 1953. They expanded from a small shop beside the old post office into a new store in 1964. Their family operated a clothing and shoe business in town for forty-eight years, although the connection between that business and this particular sign remains unconfirmed.

UPDATE: The original store pictured here has been reported closed, with the building surviving in another use. The vintage sign has also been reported removed. This view preserves a little of the character that once accompanied a downtown shopping trip. 06-26

Sign
Idaho Falls, ID
Photo courtesy Dave & Debra van Hulsteyn

Here's an unidentified Sign in Idaho Falls, Idaho. Even without a business name to go with it, the geometric shapes and layered construction make it an interesting roadside find. Somebody clearly wanted this advertisement to have more personality than a plain rectangle. 10-06

The stepped forms and streamlined appearance suggest an Art Deco influence, although its construction date remains unknown. Designs like this gave commercial signs a sense of movement and modernity, using the shape of the sign itself to help catch attention.

UPDATE: The original business and the sign's present whereabouts remain unidentified. For now, this photograph preserves the design and leaves a little roadside mystery to solve. It would be interesting to see what lettering once completed the picture. 06-26

Smith's Dairy Products (Closed)
Buhl, ID
Photo courtesy Dave & Debra van Hulsteyn

Here's a gem of a sign at Smith's Dairy Products in Buhl, Idaho. The lettering was a fitting companion to the creamery's streamlined building and glass-block details. A dairy plant might be a practical place, but this one certainly had some roadside style. 09-08

Smith's began bottling and delivering milk in 1944. A 2000 radio feature followed Ormand Smith through the operation, where glass bottles still moved through the plant and milk deliveries reached families who had been customers for generations. Smith even sang while he worked, adding another bit of personality to the old dairy.

UPDATE: Bill and Donna Stoltzfus purchased the former dairy in 2007 and reopened it as Cloverleaf Creamery after extensive renovations. The building survives in dairy use, although the Smith's sign had been removed by 2012. Good to see this distinctive property continuing its original line of work. 06-26

Johnson Storage
Denver, CO
Photo courtesy Tammy Terwelp

The Johnson Storage blade sign adds a distinctive vertical landmark to Broadway in Denver, Colorado. Its tall lettering and decorative border give the building the look of an established business that expected customers to recognize its name from down the street. 09-10

Johnson Storage & Moving began in 1900 and grew from a single Broadway operation into a multigeneration family business. The sign's beaded border suggests a possible 1920s origin, although that dating remains an estimate. Its neon channel lettering appears to have been added later.

UPDATE: Johnson Storage & Moving remains in business, and the Broadway sign has been documented surviving into recent years. Good to see this longtime company retaining a visible connection to its early Denver roots. 06-26

Gases
Denver, CO
Photo courtesy Tammy Terwelp

Here's a Denver sign that gets straight to the point: GASES. The smaller wording explains the business, advertising medical, industrial, and specialty gases. It's an unusual subject for a roadside photograph, but the bold lettering certainly makes you look. 09-10

Unlike a motel marquee promising a comfortable bed, this sign addressed customers looking for working supplies. Welders, mechanics, contractors, and medical users depended on products most passing travelers probably gave little thought to. The straightforward message gives the sign an appeal of its own.

UPDATE: The company associated with this sign and its current status remain unconfirmed. Whether the marquee survives is also unknown, leaving this photograph as a reminder that industrial businesses contributed their share of character to Denver's commercial streets. 06-26