photos of old signs on the internet

[mukade]

can anyone tell me what that small European-looking car is?  closest to the camera of all the cars which are fully visible.

Yep.

It's a Renault Dauphine.

The car was exported from France to the North American market in the late 1950's and early 1960's in relatively large numbers, and at one time, was somewhat common, but it was never able to effectively compete with the Volkswagen Beetle (like the Beetle, the Dauphine had an engine mounted in the rear, though the Dauphine's engine was water-cooled). 

Seeing that this was on the west coast, it could also be a Hino Contessa. Japanese-made cars started appearing in the US in the early 1960s.

[RoadWarrior56]

My dad drove a Reanult Dauphone around 1963 when I was a kid.  The car was just like the one in the photo, except that his was blue.

[NE2]

from www.aaroads.com/shields/show.php?image=IN19610651


from http://www.flickr.com/photos/metroblossom/1595620009/ (sign has since been removed)

[CanesFan27]

Still a few of these found in the small old steel towns of the Mon Valley


Signals ahead in Webster by Adam's Journey, on Flickr

[formulanone]

A bunch from the Florida Memory Collection:

[Alps]

They don't make em like that anymore!

[formulanone]

They don't make em like that anymore!

Considering that in 1954, the average car was close to 2 tons without fuel or passengers... 

[ctsignguy]

Ohhh, to poke through that sign shop for treasures (like those embossed shields!)

[florida]

Ohhh, to poke through that sign shop for treasures (like those embossed shields!)

And the older state road shield blanks!


Fun With eBay: http://www.ebay.com/itm/MARIANNA-FLORIDA-Confederate-Soldiers-Monument-1961-Chevrolet-automobile-/400415292322?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item5d3a9c7ba2

Check out the bottom one. http://www.ebay.com/itm/vintage-postcard-Dunedin-Florida-Main-Street-Edgewater-Dr-1955-1960-stamps-/321072204677?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4ac1650b85

[NE2]

A few I found:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/13184821@N07/5867764450/


http://www.flickr.com/photos/dboo/2200624126/


http://www.flickr.com/photos/boston_public_library/6956628545/


http://www.flickr.com/photos/boston_public_library/8450283351/


http://www.flickr.com/photos/boston_public_library/6967629675/


http://www.flickr.com/photos/mit-libraries/3441016015/


More Boston here: http://www.flickr.com/search/?w=24029425@N06&q=sign http://www.flickr.com/search/?w=8057117@N03&q=sign

[agentsteel53]

these are great!  especially the first one, which is from New York City.  the signs look to be about 60s, but the gantry dates back to the 30s or 40s for sure.

[Alex]

Found these photos while researching I-74 through Peoria, which show the original squashed cloverleaf interchange at North Main Street (US 150/IL 116):


Peoria and I-74 from East by roger4336, on Flickr


Downtown Peoria and I-74 (1975) by roger4336, on Flickr

[MDOTFanFB]

An easy method of finding footage of old signs is by watching older TV programs and movies. For example, this is one of many views of old Atlanta signage on the show "Matlock", showing Downtown Connector exit 99 (now exit 249C), complete with a vintage Delta Airlines billboard in the background (I don't know why the middle sign on the gantry to the right has a lot of unused space, maybe GA 10 didn't exist in 1994, if it was originally that way when it was installed when the Connector was widened during "Free the Freeways", someone from the Atlanta area can chime in):



And a comparison I made, showing how much the Connector has changed between 1994 (when the particular episode showing that scene first aired) and 2011 (when the Street View image was taken), including the 2000 change to mileage-based exits (of course) and the conversion of the innermost lanes to HOV around the same time:

[Alex]

An easy method of finding footage of old signs is by watching older TV programs and movies. For example, this is one of many views of old Atlanta signage on the show "Matlock", showing Downtown Connector exit 99 (now exit 249C), complete with a vintage Delta Airlines billboard in the background (I don't know why the middle sign on the gantry to the right has a lot of unused space, maybe GA 10 didn't exist in 1994, if it was originally that way when it was installed when the Connector was widened during "Free the Freeways", someone from the Atlanta area can chime in):

And a comparison I made, showing how much the Connector has changed between 1994 (when the particular episode showing that scene first aired) and 2011 (when the Street View image was taken), including the 2000 change to mileage-based exits (of course) and the conversion of the innermost lanes to HOV around the same time:

I still have some VHS video that I shot through Atlanta in 1995 and 1996. A lot of button copy was still around in 1995 and many overheads were lit at night.

A couple of my 1995/96 still-shots (need to be rescanned) are found on http://www.southeastroads.com/i-075f_ga.html

One northbound photo is posted too:

[MDOTFanFB]

I still have some VHS video that I shot through Atlanta in 1995 and 1996. A lot of button copy was still around in 1995 and many overheads were lit at night.

Didn't know that there was a brief period when Georgia used both Series D and sequential exit numbering! And how do we view those videos? I know you used to have a Youtube account (you had I-85 south through the metro area in January 1996 and two night ones of I-285 in June 1996, both of the night ones even had awesome jazz music!), but you've deleted it a while back.

[Mapmikey]

The Tee's Chapel is the sixth black-on-white sign I have found.  Two of them, Wake Crossroads and Mt. Pelier Church have been removed.  The other Amantha - I have yet to see in person.

Was this any of the six you've previously seen?  I ran across this one yesterday on River Rd between NC 903 and NC 46 near Lake Gaston. There was a green Warren Co sign hanging on the same post heading the other direction.

Mapmikey

[CanesFan27]

Mike,

Great find!  That is most likely the only w-o-b county sign in NC left standing.  We go up to Lake Gaston (specifically to Bracey) 3-4x a year. There are some other older signs on side roads in the Littleton area.

[M3019C LPS20]

Classic New York City porcelain "humpback" street sign with original sign case.

[PurdueBill]

From just north of Logan Airport back in the day.  I think the US 1 shield covers a C-1 shield?

[NE2]

From just north of Logan Airport back in the day.  I think the US 1 shield covers a C-1 shield?

Probably; this went from C1 to US 1 to 1A. But the choice of control cities is a bit weird, since both are off to the right on 1A in a couple miles.

[deathtopumpkins]

Well, judging by where that was taken the control cities make perfect sense. [What is now] 1A goes straight through both Revere and Lynn, both of which are big cities. In fact from that point it would be physically impossible to go anywhere other than Revere (or by taking the exit to 145, Winthrop).

Current signage shows just Revere as the control city for 1A northbound, with 145 changed to Chelsea  (seems kinda like an odd choice to me), and according to Steve Alpert's site, the previous generation of signage remained Revere and Lynn: http://www.alpsroads.net/roads/ma/ma_1a/n145.jpg

[agentsteel53]

excellent double-bordered 145 shield.  the US-1 looks like a standard '61 spec independent-mount shield.

[CanesFan27]

From 1966 - I-76 and 79 signed in downtown Pittsburgh

http://images.library.pitt.edu/cgi-bin/i/image/image-idx?rgn1=ic_all;xc=1;g=imls;sort=dc_da;q1=fort%20pitt;size=20;c=hpicasc;c=hpicchatham;c=hpiccma;c=hpichswp;c=hpicmonroeville;c=hpicnpl;c=hpicoakmont;c=hpicphlf;c=hpicpitcairn;c=hpicpointpark;c=hpicrsc;c=hpicusc;back=back1365010390;subview=detail;resnum=422;view=entry;lastview=thumbnail;cc=hpicasc;entryid=x-715.119237-und-4.cp;viewid=119237_4CP.TIF

[agentsteel53]

not to mention the US-22 and US-30 cutouts!

[Mapmikey]

Here is a picture of the Eastern Shore ferry landing of US 13

http://www.esva.net/ghotes/placepix/economy/transportation/bridge2.jpg

Here is an old stream name sign from when VA 520 was still unpaved.  This picture would be 1930 or 1931, I'm guessing.
http://www.esva.net/ghotes/chincoteague/ChincoteagueGallery/pages/chincoteagueblacknarrowsbridge.htm

Also, the original drawbridge to Chincoteague (not the 1940 bridge recently replaced)
http://www.esva.net/ghotes/chincoteague/ChincoteagueGallery/pages/chincoteagueDrawBridge.htm