A couple of vintage San Francisco photos from CalTrafficSigns

[TheStranger]

San Francisco Skyway (US 40/US 50, now I-80) at 4th Street, early 1950s:

http://caltrafficsigns.com/pictures/displayimage.php?album=11&pos=32

Note the lack of route identification on any pull-throughs!

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Golden Gate Bridge?

http://caltrafficsigns.com/pictures/displayimage.php?album=11&pos=22

That's fascinating because due to the odd legislative definition of US 101/Route 1 in the post-1964 era, there are no route markers on the bridge itself nowadays.

Some 1930s CSAA signage:
http://caltrafficsigns.com/pictures/displayimage.php?album=11&pos=68

[agentsteel53]

San Francisco Skyway (US 40/US 50, now I-80) at 4th Street, early 1950s:

http://caltrafficsigns.com/pictures/displayimage.php?album=11&pos=32

Note the lack of route identification on any pull-throughs!

I believe route shields started appearing only in 1955, and before that, there was the occasional spelled-out route identifier, but it was not used often.  Somewhere I have a photo of a spelled out US 101/Army Street gantry and that picture is from 1954.

Golden Gate Bridge?

http://caltrafficsigns.com/pictures/displayimage.php?album=11&pos=22

That's fascinating because due to the odd legislative definition of US 101/Route 1 in the post-1964 era, there are no route markers on the bridge itself nowadays.

also, the CSAA sign dating back to the opening of the bridge ("no stopping or turning") is alas now gone.

Some 1930s CSAA signage:
http://caltrafficsigns.com/pictures/displayimage.php?album=11&pos=68

I believe that font was introduced in 1940, but it may have been earlier by a couple years.  The fact that that "no stopping or turning" has no logo implies that some of the surviving "no stopping or turning signs" may be older than I thought.  There is one on the Bay Bridge westbound, and I think one on the San Rafael to Richmond 580 bridge.  Neither have a logo, and both have that older font.

[TheStranger]

San Francisco Skyway (US 40/US 50, now I-80) at 4th Street, early 1950s:

http://caltrafficsigns.com/pictures/displayimage.php?album=11&pos=32

Note the lack of route identification on any pull-throughs!

I believe route shields started appearing only in 1955, and before that, there was the occasional spelled-out route identifier, but it was not used often.  Somewhere I have a photo of a spelled out US 101/Army Street gantry and that picture is from 1954.

Basically, the outline shields with the Series C-like font (on black backgrounds) were only around from 1955-1957?  If so, that may explain why Bay Area examples are rather hard to find, as Doyle Drive and the San Francisco Skyway were the only two freeways complete by that time period, IIRC.

I believe that font was introduced in 1940, but it may have been earlier by a couple years.  The fact that that "no stopping or turning" has no logo implies that some of the surviving "no stopping or turning signs" may be older than I thought.  There is one on the Bay Bridge westbound, and I think one on the San Rafael to Richmond 580 bridge.  Neither have a logo, and both have that older font.

The Richmond-San Rafael Bridge was opened in 1956 so that's as early as any signage on there would've been - which also means that it arrived right after the first modern California shields (the black-on-white version) came into existence.

[agentsteel53]

Basically, the outline shields with the Series C-like font (on black backgrounds) were only around from 1955-1957?  If so, that may explain why Bay Area examples are rather hard to find, as Doyle Drive and the San Francisco Skyway were the only two freeways complete by that time period, IIRC.

you mean this style?



that is interchangeable with the series D style as well:



and that style was used until the great sign modernization of August, 1958 (different shape outline shields, rounded-rectangle white border, etc)

The Richmond-San Rafael Bridge was opened in 1956 so that's as early as any signage on there would've been - which also means that it arrived right after the first modern California shields (the black-on-white version) came into existence.

yep, though they were making bears as reassurance as late as May 1957.  Same with the California/US style shields being made in parallel with the larger US-only from 1956-1957. 

[TheStranger]

you mean this style?
that is interchangeable with the series D style as well:


and that style was used until the great sign modernization of August, 1958 (different shape outline shields, rounded-rectangle white border, etc)

Yes!

I would suspect that the original Eastshore Highway and Macarthur Maze had signage like this as well - I have not seen any pre-1960s photos of the Macarthur Maze though...

That Auburn I-80 sign in the other thread might be one of the few black+outline era installs ever to have been produced in the Interstate era.

The Richmond-San Rafael Bridge was opened in 1956 so that's as early as any signage on there would've been - which also means that it arrived right after the first modern California shields (the black-on-white version) came into existence.

yep, though they were making bears as reassurance as late as May 1957.  Same with the California/US style shields being made in parallel with the larger US-only from 1956-1957. 

To put it in perspective - did Route 42 (a number dating back to 1956-1957) ever receive bear shields? 

[agentsteel53]

I would suspect that the original Eastshore Highway and Macarthur Maze had signage like this as well - I have not seen any pre-1960s photos of the Macarthur Maze though...

nor have I - might be something to look for at the CalTrans library, as - when I went - I concentrated on the LA area freeways.

That Auburn I-80 sign in the other thread might be one of the few black+outline era installs ever to have been produced in the Interstate era.

quite possibly.  Hm, now that I'm home, remind me to find some CA interstate specs in a little bit.

To put it in perspective - did Route 42 (a number dating back to 1956-1957) ever receive bear shields? 

I've never seen one, but that doesn't mean anything.

[agentsteel53]

a brief glance through that big file filled with obsolete specs shows that there are green signs as old as 11/58!  So it looks like it was a gradual switch between 11/58 and 9/59.  Then again, there are some black signs with '60 spec in here, and I know of black signs with 61 stamp, so it was even more gradual than that, but it looks like the vast majority of the changeover took place in 58-59.

also, the outline shields were obsoleted in 7/62, not 8/62 as I had remembered.

[J N Winkler]

a brief glance through that big file filled with obsolete specs shows that there are green signs as old as 11/58!  So it looks like it was a gradual switch between 11/58 and 9/59.  Then again, there are some black signs with '60 spec in here, and I know of black signs with 61 stamp, so it was even more gradual than that, but it looks like the vast majority of the changeover took place in 58-59.

The source of that "big file" is a set of photocopies I made of a single binder of obsoleted Caltrans G-series specs, took home to Kansas, and later scanned and photographed.  I think there is at least one other binder of obsolete G-series specs which I was not shown, because an obsoleted G-series spec for an experimental milepost (dating from the exit numbering experiment of 1972) was pulled from such a binder later.  I am also confident that there are binders for obsoleted specs in the R, W, C, and maybe even S, SR, SW, and SC series although I have never seen them.

[agentsteel53]

I think there is at least one other binder of obsolete G-series specs which I was not shown

interesting; this is definitely worth finding.  was it the Caltrans library that let you take the binder to Kansas for a while to scan?