We’re Looking for Great Old Signs That Became Local Landmarks

Looking across the water from Manhattan to the Long Island City neighborhood in Queens, you sure do crave a Pepsi. While the huge bottling plant that used to operate here is long gone, its monumental “Pepsi-Cola” sign remains. Today it’s more local icon than advertisement—the sign was granted landmark status in 2016.

All over the world, historic advertisements and signs have outlasted their original purpose and evolved into landmarks that are worth saving—and we want to hear about your favorites! St. Louis, Missouri, has its massive Amoco sign, which now sits atop a BP. Stockholm, Sweden, has held on to a giant neon toothbrush that once advertised Stomatol toothpaste. And in Boston, locals love their Citgo sign so much that they recently fought to save it.

If you have a favorite old sign or ad that has evolved into an important local landmark, please tell us about it via the form below. Even better, if you have any terrific images of your favorite landmark sign, please email them to eric@atlasobscura.com with the subject line, “Landmark Signage.” Please send high resolution images if possible (though feel free to send as many versions as you’d like). We’ll feature our favorite submissions in an upcoming article.

If you have a landmark sign of your own to share, head over to our community forums and tell us about it!