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Neon Extension Signs (page 3)

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Gus's Barbecue
South Pasadena, CA
Gus's Barbecue opened in 1946. In 1987, earthquake damaged forced the restaurant to close. It reopened in 1990. The blade sign features sequentially lit neon pigs and chickens around the sign panels. That sign appears to be from the 1950s. The neon on the front of the building is probably from later. For more, see these websites: 1 and 2. [map]

Bluebird Lodge
& Cottages [gone]
Eureka Springs, AR		 Jensen & Pilegard
Fresno, CA
The Bluebird Lodge & Cottages featured a neon bluebird sign on top of a plastic box sign. The motel and sign were built in 1984. This photo was taken in 2010. By 2013, the bluebird and remaining neon musical note had been replaced with a motorcycle for the Bikers Bluebird Lodge.

This Jensen & Pilegard store sells lawn and garden equipment. When the company was first established in 1936, it also sold feed and seed. Therefore, I think that this sign with the rooster might have advertised for Jensen & Pilegard originally. It appears to be from the 1950s. There would have been neon letters on the panels originally. [map]

New Stockton Poultry Market
Stockton, CA
2008: 2014:
The New Stockton Poultry Market sign is probably from the 1950s. The chicken's neon tubing is broken. The remains of the neon arrows beneath the sign disappeared sometime after 2012. [map]

Byrd Drug Company
Troy, AL		 Neal's Cafe
Springdale, AR
The Byrd Drug Company opened in 1940. This sign might be from then or, more likely, from the 1950s. It features a neon bird. For more, see this website. [map]

Neal's Cafe opened in 1944. This sign might be from then or, more likely, the 1950s. These photos are from 2010. By 2012, the chicken figure in the circle had been restored. For more, see this website. [map]

Drake Hardware [gone]
Nashville, TN		 Duck Blind
Santa Monica, CA		 Ice Box
Logan, UT
This photo of the Drake Hardware sign is from 2007. It appears that there were three animated geese on top of the sign. Around 2011, the neon was removed and the panels were repainted. By 2015, the entire sign was gone.

The Duck Blind liquor store opened in the early 1950s. The store moved across the street to this location in the 1960s. This sign is probably from then. This duck detail is perched on top of the sign. For more, see this website. [map]

The animated Ice Box bar sign with its parading penguins was built and installed in 2020. The bar has closed but the sign remains. [map]

Busy Bee Cafe [gone]
Dubuque, IA		 Horseshoe Cafe
Benson, AZ		 Trout Lodge
Naches, WA
The Busy Bee Cafe opened in 1915. This sign is probably from the 1950s or so. The Busy Bee closed in 1998 and this sign was left behind. It was on display at the Old Jail Museum downtown when this photo was taken in 2009. The sign features four stylized bees, two of which extend from the sign panels. It is now in storage at the National Mississippi River Museum & Aquarium. For more, see this website.

The Horseshoe Cafe opened in the 1930s. This sign is probably from the 1950s. This neon horse is one of the few examples of neon extensions contained within the sign panels. [map]

The Trout Lodge sign features a trout which leaps in two-part animation. The neon text is white, red, and green while the trout is lit with red tubing. The motel is located right next to the Tieton River and its restaurant specializes in fried trout. The business was established in the 1940s. This sign which is about seven feet tall was installed between 1957 and 1965. Around 1996, the sign was blasted by snow blowers and the neon was broken. When it was restored, the word "cafe" was changed to "restaurant". At that time, the sign was moved from its previous spot next to the road to its position next to building for protection. For more, see this website. [map]

Godwin's 303 Package & Sporting Goods Store
Poplar Bluff, MO
2010: 2024:
The Godwin's 303 Package & Sporting Goods Store sign was built in 1951. It features a neon fisherman on top holding an animated line of fish. The 303 referred to the store's address. By 2015, the store and the sign were gone. The sign reappeared in 2017, completely restored and animated, in front Hefner Furniture & Appliance. It was restored by Bootheel Sign. For more, see this website. [map]

Spenger's Fresh Fish Grotto
Berkeley, CA
Spenger's Fresh Fish Grotto was established as a clam stand in 1890. The restaurant opened in the 1930s. These signs were built in 1948 by Nelson Neon of Richmond, CA. The signs feature neon extensions of fish and waves. The restaurant closed in 2018. The place reopened as Bar 19 at Spenger's. The signs are still there. For more, see these websites: 1 and 2. [map]

Green Frog Market
Bakersfield, CA (now Glendale, CA)
2012: 2016:
The Green Frog Market stores in Bakersfield took their name from a Stockton chain which was established in 1930. The Stockton chain had four locations by 1948 when the owner sold the stores and began building new Green Frog Markets in San Francisco, San Jose and Oakland. With permission to use the same name, the first Bakersfield store opened in 1934. The second Bakersfield location was built in 1946. A third location opened in 1988. It is believed that this neon frog sign at the second Bakersfield location came from one of the Stockton stores. When the location opened, it originally used a sitting frog for its logo and sign. However, when the store remodeled and expanded in 1952, this sign was installed. It was probably built in the 1930s. The sign has ripple tin panels and porcelain housings. The animated neon frog tipped his hat and the "Howdy Folks" text flashed on and off. During a renovation in 2009, the sign was moved from the store's roof to a "cage" on the ground. The owner believed the sign would be better protected there from vandals. The second location was the only one left when it closed in 2013. The sign was donated to the Museum of Neon Art in Glendale, CA then. It has been restored and is now displayed in the museum's lobby. There is an unrestored, twin sign in Santa Cruz, CA. For more, see these websites: 1, 2, 3, and 4.

Neon Extensions
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page 2		 Neon Extensions
page 4		 Neon Extensions
page 5		 Main SCA Article
Companion Page		 Main Signs Page