South of the Border
Dillon, SC Photo courtesy Paul Bauke
The South of the Border is literally on the North-South Carolina border. It's an interesting restaurant
and souvenir complex on US Route 301, and I95. "Pedro" has been
serving north-south travelers since the mid 1950s, first on Route 301
and now on I95.
South of the Border is still hanging on along the blacktop of I-95 and US-301 right as you cross into South Carolina. While time and the elements have taken their toll on the sprawling roadside complex with faded motor court rooms, quieted amusement rides, and shuttered dining rooms showing plenty of weathering, Pedro's towering 200-foot sombrero observation tower still looms high over the highway. 11-26
The Cherokee Trader
Cherokee, NC
Photo courtesy Kevin Powers
The Cherokee Trader is one of many trading posts around Cherokee selling "genuine"
Indian artifacts and gifts. On such post has a live rooster that will
come out and eat food dispensed from an automatic feeder for a small price. Many thanks to Kevin Powers for info
Lois Queen Farthing established the shop, adding to her family's substantial involvement in Cherokee's visitor businesses. The sign was installed in 1964, when independent motels, gift shops, and attractions competed for Smoky Mountain vacation traffic. Its stylized imagery reflected that advertising era rather than traditional Cherokee dress.
UPDATE: The Cherokee Trader remains open along Tsali Boulevard, with its vintage roadside sign still outside. More than sixty years after its installation, the display continues marking a longtime stop on the drive through Cherokee. 11-26
Doerr Furniture
New Orleans, LA Photo courtesy Devil Doll
The tall Doerr Furniture blade sign gives Elysian Fields Avenue a familiar piece of old commercial advertising. Large vertical letters project from the building, making the store easy to identify along the street. Its streamlined shape and illuminated lettering suit a business whose history reaches back to the late 1930s.
Charles L. Doerr Sr. founded the company in 1938, beginning with wholesale sales of rocking chairs made in the family's backyard workshop. The business expanded into retail furniture and appliances, operating from a former Ford dealership in the Faubourg Marigny. Successive generations kept the family name above the door.
UPDATE: Doerr Furniture remains in business at its longtime New Orleans location. The restored projecting sign survives, preserving the distinctive street presence of a family enterprise that grew from handmade rocking chairs into a regional furniture retailer. 11-26
Walker Radiator Works (Gone)
Memphis, TN Photo courtesy Devil Doll
Now here's one neon sign that really knows how to advertise the problem. The Walker Radiator Works sign in Memphis features a big radiator complete with an animated neon drip falling from the bottom. Follow the glowing arrow and watch the leak drip away. Hopefully your own radiator wasn't doing the same thing.
Walker Radiator Works opened on Marshall Avenue in 1932 and became a longtime Memphis fixture, specializing in radiators for street rods and vintage cars. The fantastic sign was added in 1952 and stood about 11 feet tall, with sequential neon creating the dripping effect.
Walker Radiator Works (2008)
Memphis, TN Photo courtesy Elgin MacMillan
There's another reason this sign may look familiar. Walker Radiator sat right next door to Sun Studio, so countless visitors heading over to see where Elvis, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis and others recorded also got a good look at that dripping radiator.
The shop remained in the Walker family for an impressive 89 years.
UPDATE: The Walker Radiator Works neon sign is still in great working condition. According to Vernon Walker Sr. who also had a wealth of knowledge about the birth of the Memphis music legends that came out of Sun Studios, his Dad started the Walker Radiator Works in 1932. The shop is located right next to the Sun Studios and the sign went up in 1950. Many thanks to Elgin MacMillan for info. 05-08
UPDATE: Walker Radiator Works closed in May 2021, and the old dripping radiator sign was removed from the building. 08-26
Granite Lake (Rem.)
Granite Quarry, NC Photo courtesy Tony Craig
The Granite Lake sign once directed travelers toward a different kind of roadside refreshment. Instead of a cold drink or an air-conditioned dining room, this Granite Quarry attraction offered swimming, a sandy beach, picnic space, and a chance to escape the summer heat. Its slide and high dive supplied additional reasons to spend the afternoon.
The privately operated swimming lake served the area for decades. A 1969 fire destroyed the bathhouse and interrupted operations until 1973. Swimming continued through the summer of 1999, after which the property entered a new chapter as the town developed it into a public park.
UPDATE: Granite Lake Park opened in 2007 and remains available for walking, picnicking, and fishing. Public swimming has ended, and the original roadside sign is gone, but the lake continues serving as a community recreation spot. 11-26
T.M. Hazle GE Appliances (Gone)
Hodgenville, KY Photo courtesy Devil Doll
The familiar GE emblem gave T.M. Hazle General Electric Appliances an advertisement recognizable before you read the dealer's name. Hanging beside the downtown Hodgenville building, the sign combined a national manufacturer with a local merchant. Its remaining tubing and shaped panels made it worth examining even when the illumination was uncertain.
Independent appliance dealers once supplied households with refrigerators, ranges, and other major purchases from downtown storefronts. Manufacturer signs helped identify the brands available inside, while the proprietor's name connected the merchandise with local sales and service. Hazle's sign belonged to that familiar commercial arrangement, before larger chain stores dominated appliance shopping.
UPDATE: The T.M. Hazle appliance business has closed, and its General Electric sign has been removed. The former building remains along North Lincoln Boulevard, retaining the setting after its most distinctive advertisement disappeared. 11-26
Doerr Furniture
Walker Radiator Works (Gone)
Walker Radiator Works (2008)
Granite Lake (Rem.)
T.M. Hazle GE Appliances (Gone)
