All posts by drkenjonesphotography

Website and Database Fixed!!!!!

September 11, 2019 drkenjonesphotography Leave a comment

When my service provider upgraded from PHP 5 to PHP 7 some months ago, my website stopped working. I have now re-written the code. It is up-to-date with the current versions of PHP, HTML, CSS, Javascript, JQuery, and mySQL.

You can access the database using the map on the left menu bar, or by clicking on this link : http://drkenjones.com/webPageUSMap.php

For those of you who have not seen the site, there are approximately 8000 ghost signs from around the United States. I still have around 800 that I have not yet added to the database. I have photographed them all myself.

The site used to provide a map showing sign locations, but Google now charges me for that service, so I have deleted it. You still have access to Google Street View, as well as the lat/lon for most signs.

Ghost Signs

January 2019 – Updated Ghost Sign Database

January 9, 2019 drkenjonesphotography Leave a comment

I have updated my ghost sign database to include over 300 new ghost signs from Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Illinois, and Wyoming. There are a few re-shoots with better lighting conditions, but mostly these are new additions. These signs were photographed between 2015 and 2017.

Below is a sample of the newly added ghost signs. To see the entire database, go to http://www.drkenjones.com/ghostsigns/USMap.php.

Uncategorized

Sept 2018 – Updated Ghost Sign Database

September 25, 2018 drkenjonesphotography Leave a comment

I have updated my ghost sign database to include the signs shown on the map. I have added just over 500 new ghost signs from Arizona, California, Oregon, Washington, Virginia, Illinois, Idaho. New Mexico, Utah, Colorado, Wyoming, and Montana. There are a few re-shoots, but mostly these are new additions.

Here is a sampling of some of the more unique examples from the newly added ghost signs. Many of these have already been destroyed since I photographed them in the last four years.

Ghost Signs, Image Enhancement, Petroglyphs, Pictographs, Rock Art

Enhancing Ghost Signs and Petroglyphs

June 11, 2018 drkenjonesphotography Leave a comment

I have posted a video on YouTube that describes my method for enhancing Ghost Signs and Petroglyphs.

https://youtu.be/dcmURnKlX2w

Petroglyphs, Pictographs, Rock Art

Enhancing Rock Art

June 5, 2018 drkenjonesphotography Leave a comment

Although I flip-flop between ghost signs and rock art, I use the same photographic and enhancement techniques for both.

This example is a well-known location in Dinosaur National Monument. The two enhancements emphasize different things. The first brings out details such as the texture in the “flower pot”. The second emphasizes the scratched vandalism. The second example is from the Rock Art site south of Rangely, Colorado. This example of Barrier Canyon style painted rock art is both faded and vandalized. The enhancement emphasizes the red pigment and minimizes the scratches.

Ghost Signs

Updated Ghost Sign Database

April 14, 2018 drkenjonesphotography Leave a comment

I just added around 600 more ghost signs to my database. These were signs I photographed in 2014, plus a few from 2015 and 2017. The map shows where these newly added signs are located – mostly New York, Pennsylvania, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Connecticut. There are a few others scattered around.

The map below shows the complete coverage of ghost signs in the database. It contains around 7300 ghost signs. I still have another 1000 to add that I have already photographed.

Here is a gallery of some of the more interesting (and pretty) signs that I just added. I have included some enhancements so you can see the separate layers. If you want the signs’ locations, click on the map at the top of the left column of this page. That link takes you to the database.

Arps Brothers Hardware Co. / Garage, Ouray, Colorado, 2015

Farmers Implement Co. – McCornick / International Harvester. / Deering Sales and Service, Yuma, Colordo, 2015

Consolidated Cigar Corp. – Dutch Master Cigars, Glastonbury, Connecticut, 2017

Carriage Repository, Hartford, Connecticut, 2017

Colt Gun Factory – Smokestack, Hartford, Connecticut, 2017

Red Rock Cola, Hartford, Connecticut, 2017 (A reshoot of one I had photographed in 2010)

White Rose Bread, Hartford, Connecticut, 2017

Low Down Wagons, Holyoke, Massachusetts, 2014

Springfield Photo Mount Co., Holyoke, Massachusetts, 2014

1776-1976 Bicentennial Mural (now Painted Over), Bay City, Michigan, 2014

Dr. Pierce’s Prescription – Cures Weak Women / Battle Ax Plug Tobacco / Harness / Corn, Oats, Feed, Bay City, Michigan, 2014

Detail of previous sign – Layer 1 – Harness

Detail of previous sign – Layer 2 – Feed, Corn

Lee Overalls / Vertin’s Department Store, Calumet, Michigan, 2014

Pillsbury’s Best Flour, Calumet, Michigan, 2014

Electric Irons and Heating Devices, Detroit, Michigan, 2014

Goodrich Truck Tires (now demolished), Detroit, Michigan, 2014

Mail Pouch Tobacco, Detroit, Michigan, 2014

Northern Cranes, Detroit, Michigan, 2014

Wurlitzer Building, Detroit, Michigan, 2014

King Midas Flour, Hancock, Michigan, 2014

Skinner Chamberlain Co., Albert Lea, Minnesota, 2014

Farmers & Merchants State Bank, Blooming Prairie, Minnesota, 2014

Brainerd Model Laundry, Brainerd, Minnesota, 2014

Burton Cafe / Market, Fairmont, Minnesota, 2014

Farmers Cooperative Creamery, Fairmont, Minnesota, 2014

Hamm’s Excelsior – Keg & Bottled, Fairmont, Minnesota, 2014

Occident Flour, Glenwood, Minnesota, 2014

Henry George Cigar / Farm Machinery, Long Prairie, Minnesota, 2014

The previous sign advertised carriages. Here is a real one on the street!

State Index Minnesota Marshall Product Index Sports & Recreation (Guns & Tackle) Best Signs Photomethods Low resolution version – placeholder only Location Google Street View 44.4490511,-95.7916063 stateIconDisplay on Map Guns Tackle, Marshall, Minnesota, 2014

L. H. Powell Auto Co., Marshall, Minnesota, 2014

Peterson Music Co. – West Side, Marshall, Minnesota, 2014

remo Cigar / Coca Cola, Owatonna, Minnesota, 2014

Gano’s Hotel, Pipestone, Minnesota, 2014

Pepsi Cola / Sloan’s Liniment, Greensboro, North Carolina, 2014

Rexall Pharmacy, Marshall, North Carolina, 2014

Nabisco – Not Real : Painted for Movie Background, Newland, North Carolina, 2014

Jim Robinson / Obers Fertilizers / Deering Farm Implements / Coca Cola, Reidsville, North Carolina, 2014

Coca Cola between Buildings, Reidsville, North Carolina, 2014

Wrigley’s Spearmint Gum, Reidsville, North Carolina, 2014

B. P. O. E., Bismarck, North Dakota, 2014

Bowling Alleys, Devils Lake, North Dakota, 2014

Billiard Hall / Coca Cola / Owl Cigar, Devils Lake, North Dakota, 2014

C. D. Haley Farm Machinery / Studebaker, Devils Lake, North Dakota, 2014

Coca Cola / Robert Burns Cigars, Dickinson, North Dakota, 2014

Coca Cola / Wrigley’s P. K. Chewing Sweet (very faded}, Fargo, North Dakota, 2014

Coca Cola / Wrigley’s P. K. Chewing Sweet / [Occident] Flour – Makes Better Bread, Fargo, North Dakota, 2014

Dakota Business College, Fargo, North Dakota, 2014

Hotel Powers / Wrigleys P.K. Chewing Sweet, Fargo, North Dakota, 2014

Union Storage & Transfer – Frozen Food Lockers, Fargo, North Dakota, 2014

Hotel Lewis & Clark, Mandan, North Dakota, 2014

Northern Moline Plow Co. / Griggs Cooper & Co. / Winston and Newell Co., Minot, North Dakota, 2014

Lee Jeans / Billiard Hall, Rugby, North Dakota, 2014

Equity Co-op Elev. Co. – No.1, Sheyenne, North Dakota, 2014

Gold Medal Flour / Meat Market / Hides, Willow City, North Dakota, 2014

General House Furnisher, Nashua, New Hampshire, 2010

Mail Pouch Tobacco / Baker’s Opera House / W. H. Baker – Dry Goods, Dover, New Jersey, 2014

Anderson Dry Goods, Canandaigua, New York, 2014

Hardware / Mill Supplies, Carthage, New York, 2014

Blum’s Variety / 5 Stores in one – Sampson Brothers Clothiers/ Go by the Book on Beecham’s Pills, Kingston, New York, 2014

Ivory Soap / Marehess Groceries, Lowville, New York, 2014

Wrigley’s Spearmint Gum, Lowville, New York, 2014

Gold Medal Flour 2014, Middletown, New York, 2014

Stranahan’s Gen’l Merchandise, Narrowsburg, New York, 2014

Greene’s Garage – Agent for Ford Cars, Newburgh, New York, 2014

Jap-A-Lac Paint 2014, Newburgh, New York, 2014

Uneeda Biscuit, Newburgh, New York, 2014

Vegetable Market / Phone 194, Newburgh, New York, 2014

Castoria for Children, Oneida, New York, 2014

Rice’s Old Home Stead Hotel, Oneida, New York, 2014

Brown-Davis Furniture, Oswego, New York, 2014

Mowitt the Druggist, Port Jervis, New York, 2014

Techniflex – Gas Range Connectors, Port Jervis, New York, 2014

Owl Cigar / Liberty Tobacco, Saugerties, New York, 2014

Erie Lackawanna Railroad Freight House, Utica, New York, 2014

Mail Pouch Tobacco, Utica, New York, 2014

Roberts Hardware Co., Utica, New York, 2014

Utica Barter Exchange, Utica, New York, 2014

[Adams] California Fruit Gum, Yonkers, New York, 2014

E & W Linen Collars and Cuffs (now painted over), Yonkers, New York, 2014

McCann’s Fireproof Storage Warehouse, Yonkers, New York, 2014

Hotel Gaser / Dick Bros. Racket Store (another name for 5&10 store), Ambridge, Pennsylvania, 2014

St. John The Baptist Society, Ambridge, Pennsylvania, 2014

Elk Horn Hotel, Bendersville, Pennsylvania, 2014

Boyd Theatre, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, 2014

Dad’s Root Beer on Barn, Butler, Pennsylvania, 2014

Firestone Tires, Butler, Pennsylvania, 2014

Fisher’s Cleaning & Dyeing Works Est’d 1894, Butler, Pennsylvania, 2014

Coca Cola, Carbondale, Pennsylvania, 2014

Columbia Wagon Co., Columbia, Pennsylvania, 2014

David Forey Tobacco Co., Columbia, Pennsylvania, 2014

Farm & Dump Wagons, Columbia, Pennsylvania, 2014

Silver Cup Chewing Tobacco / Tub Chewing Tobacco, Columbia, Pennsylvania, 2014

Superior Laundry Machinery #2, Columbia, Pennsylvania, 2014

Montgomery Ward / Murphy’s, Donora, Pennsylvania, 2014

Mail Pouch Tobacco Barn – North End, Fairmount City, Pennsylvania, 2014

Mail Pouch Tobacco Barn – South End, Fairmount City, Pennsylvania, 2014

Gold Medal Flour, Ford City, Pennsylvania, 2014

Mail Pouch Tobacco / Walk-Over Shoes, Ford City, Pennsylvania, 2014

Farmer’s Pride Airport / Manbeck Cut-Up Poultry / Coca Cola, Fredericksburg, Pennsylvania, 2014

Reinhart’s – Furniture & Undertaking, Hazleton, Pennsylvania, 2014

Mail Pouch Tobacco / Organs, Honesdale, Pennsylvania, 2014

Novelty Stoves Furnaces, Lansdale, Pennsylvania, 2014

Bridal Tomato Soup, Lebanon, Pennsylvania, 2014

Bridal Tomato Soup / Coca Cola, Lebanon, Pennsylvania, 2014

Evening Report / Lebanon Courier, Lebanon, Pennsylvania, 2014

Reick’s Ice Cream, Leechburg, Pennsylvania, 2014

Pillsbury’s Best Flour, Leechburg, Pennsylvania, 2014

Sheffield Farms, Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, 2014

Day Care (No! It can’t be!), McKeesport, Pennsylvania, 2014

Owl Cigar, McKeesport, Pennsylvania, 2014

Owl Cigar (wider view), McKeesport, Pennsylvania, 2014

Monongahela Republican, Monongahela, Pennsylvania, 2014

Hazzard & Son – Printers – Booksellers, Monongahela, Pennsylvania, 2014

Strayer Coin Bag Co. – Plant No.2, New Brighton, Pennsylvania, 2014

Ivory Soap, Oil City, Pennsylvania, 2014

Gibson’s Dry Goods, Not[ions] – Ladies Ready To Wear Garments / Mail Pouch Tobacco (very faded), Point Marion, Pennsylvania, 2014

Terminal Lunch, Sunbury, Pennsylvania, 2014

New Penn Theatre / Gold Medal, Uniontown, Pennsylvania, 2014

E-A-Co. Flour / Milling Aberdeen Warehouse, Aberdeen, South Dakota, 2015

Occident Feeds – Salt – Oyster Shells – Etc., Aberdeen, South Dakota, 2015

Occident Flour – Costs More – Worth It, Aberdeen, South Dakota, 2015

OshKosh B’ Gosh – The World’s Best Overalls – Salmenson’s, Aberdeen, South Dakota, 2015

Witte Hardware – Majestic Ranges, Stove, Etc., Aberdeen, South Dakota, 2015

Wrigley’s P. K. Chewing Sweet, Huron, South Dakota, 2014

Wrigley’s P. K. Chewing Sweet / Spiro’s Quick Lunch, Mobridge, South Dakota, 2014

Scotland Community Elevator, Scotland, South Dakota, 2014

Scotland Community Elevator (wide view), Scotland, South Dakota, 2014

Equity Service Co-op, Selby, South Dakota, 2014

Dakota Moline Plow Co. / Dempster Windmills Haystackers, Sioux Falls, South Dakota, 2014

Sweet’s Chocolates 2014, Garland, Utah, 2014

Forrest Gump Ended His Crosscountry Run At This Point, 1980, Monument Valley, Utah

Lamont City Sign – Nuclear Free Zone, Lamont, Washington, 2014

Ghost Signs, Nevada

Mexican Mustang Liniment – for Man or Beast

January 21, 2018 drkenjonesphotography Leave a comment

I’m starting a series where, for ghost signs I have photographed, I will show examples of the products themselves which I have found on Ebay. The first is for Mexican Mustang Liniment.

I found this great sign on a side street in Virginia City, Nevada. Virginia City is the mining town associated with the Comstock Lode, the largest silver deposit found to that time. The town went through the typical boom and bust cycle, peaking in the 1870’s. The town is also notable because it is where Mark Twain started his writing career. Today, it is an active tourist destination.

[VENI. V]IDI. VICI.
The Old
Mexican Mustang Liniment
for Man or Beast
It has STOOD the TEST
for over HALF a CENTURY
Penetrates to the ROOT of ….
AND ……

Mexican Mesquite Liniment was started in 1830 and later purchased by a New York company. There was some residue in the bottle I purchased and it smells like some yucky petroleum product. This bottle is from after 1923 based on the information shown on the paper label.

Where else would something named Mexican Mustang Liniment be made than Brooklyn, NY?

Uncategorized

Updated Ghost Sign Database

January 16, 2018 drkenjonesphotography Leave a comment

I have updated my database of ghost signs I have photographed. I added around 800 new signs, mostly in Connecticut, Georgia, Virginia, and West Virginia. There are also many signs from Milwaukee from 2013.

Here are maps showing the extent of the United States I have photographed. The red markers indicate ghost signs that are now available on my database. Click here to get started browsing.

The brown diamonds are towns where I have photographed ghost signs. I am currently working on adding approximately 1500 more signs to the database.This overlay of photographed ghost signs and cities where I have photographed ghost signs. There are many in the Dakotas that needed to be added.

Colorado, Ghost Signs

Revolving Account

October 2, 2017 drkenjonesphotography Leave a comment

I found this newly revealed sign in Denver. I had been by the same location last year, and it was not there. Google Street View shows that it was revealed when the surfacing on the building was removed during remodeling. So, while, as shown in the last post, many ghost signs are disappearing, others are reappearing.

May 2014

Sept 2016

Ghost Signs

Going, Going, Gone

October 2, 2017 drkenjonesphotography Leave a comment

When I started photographing ghost signs in 2009, it occurred to me that, as the economy came back from the recession, buildings would start being renovated or torn down. Of course, I was correct. As I update my database to include the most recent Google Map formats, i have found some that are now gone. Here are example of some of the best ghost signs that are no longer with us.

Coca Cola – Schenectady, New York (Demolished)