Valerie Jean Dates (Closed)
Palm Desert, CA
Photo courtesy Bill Herzog

Here's the Valerie Jean Dates sign in Palm Desert. The elaborate neon is all gone but the memories live on. I'll guess they embraced the old signage as we all did. Many thanks to Bill Herzog for info. 06-06

Near Thermal, the old Valerie Jean Date Shop was once a well-known stop along the lower Coachella Valley roads. Russell Nicoll opened it in 1928, named it for his newborn daughter, and is credited with inventing the date milkshake. There is even a palm tree growing straight through the roof.

UPDATE: Valerie Jean Dates closed during the 1990s, and its neon signs and large directional arrow have been removed. The weathered building remains at the old Valerie crossroads, with that palm tree still rising through the roof. 09-26

Jensen's Gardens (Gone)
Palm Springs, CA
Photo courtesy G.M. Panter Photography

Along Highway 111 in Indio, Jensen’s Date & Citrus Gardens once offered fresh dates, oranges, grapefruit, and thick Medjool date shakes to passing travelers. The property began as Sniff’s Date Garden before taking on the Jensen’s name and becoming another of the Coachella Valley’s familiar roadside fruit stops. 06-06

Its big botanical attraction was a single tree grafted to produce 14 different kinds of citrus on separate branches. Visitors could get a date shake, wander through the garden, and check several varieties of fruit without walking away from the same tree. Now that is getting some mileage from one set of roots.

UPDATE: Jensen’s Gardens closed, and its vintage roadside sign was removed. Before the neglected grove disappeared, U.C. Riverside collected budwood from some of its rare citrus trees, preserving varieties that otherwise might have been lost. 09-26

Photo Studio (Gone)
Palm Springs, CA
Photo courtesy G.M. Panter Photography

Here’s a look at an old Photo Studio found along the commercial streets of Palm Springs. By the time this picture was taken, the weathered storefront was already empty and falling apart. The faded sign was still hanging on, though it looked as if the photographer had packed up and left quite a while earlier. 06-06

The studio’s original name, address, and photographer have been lost over time. Whatever portraits and vacation pictures were once taken or developed inside may still be hiding in old family albums somewhere.

UPDATE: The vacant studio and its remaining sign were later demolished. Fittingly enough, a photograph is now one of the few UPDATE that the place was ever there. 09-26

Wilke Machine (Closed)
Brawley, CA
Photo courtesy Bill Herzog

Here’s the old roadside sign for Wilke Machine & Auto Parts in Brawley. The weathered marquee still showed off its curving mid-century lettering, with AUTO PARTS stacked across the bottom. Its gold neon was already gone, but the sign still had enough style to make this old garage worth a stop. 06-06

Wilke Machine opened in 1946 and spent 55 years supplying parts and machine work to the local community. Lee and Fanna Merritt operated the business for three decades before it finally closed around 2001.

UPDATE: No new business took over the old Wilke shop. The garage building remains vacant, while the faded double-sided sign continues to stand outside without its original neon. 09-26

Two Palms Market (Gone)
Brawley, CA
Photo by RoadsidePeek.com

Here’s the old roadside sign for Two Palms Market in Brawley. With its faded panels and weathered frame, the marquee looked as though it had been pointing local shoppers toward the neighborhood market for quite a few years. Nothing fancy, just the sort of everyday corner sign that quietly became part of the street. 10-08

Little information survives about the market’s owners or exact location. By the time the sign was photographed, it already carried plenty of Imperial Valley sun and age.

UPDATE: Two Palms Market has closed, and its old building was later cleared or substantially altered. The vintage roadside sign has also been removed. 09-26

Crowbar Cafe & Saloon
Shoshone, CA
Photo courtesy Rod Holcomb

Out along Highway 127 near Death Valley, a weathered arrow simply points toward Crowbar Cafe & Saloon. CROWBAR is painted in big letters across the sign, fading a little more beneath the desert sun. It looks slightly ominous standing by itself in the dirt, but follow the arrow and food and cold drinks are waiting nearby. 11-10

The cafe began as the Red Buggy Cafe, serving miners, railroad workers, and early highway travelers passing through Shoshone. It became the Crowbar Cafe in 1947, with the saloon added during the 1950s. Inside, an iron footrail is etched with the names of old mining operations from the surrounding desert.

UPDATE: The Crowbar remains open in Shoshone near the southeastern entrance to Death Valley National Park. Its rustic highway arrow also survives, still pointing hungry travelers toward the cafe and saloon. 09-26