Illuminated Flourescent Signs: What year did they appear?

[Fergmiester]

After building a general store I laminated all the signs and posters. This worked really well as the colour became more saturated and it added a nice gloss sheen to the sign.

It also gave me another idea Why not illuminate the General Store Sign from behind? The only question remains "was this done in 62' or were they still using floods for small country business's?

Regards
Fergie

[DSchmitt]

Do you mean Neon signs?

Here are two interesting links. The first is a very brief history of Neon signs. The second is old Neon signs in Texas. According to the History the first Neon sign in America (1923) was at a Packard car dealership located in Los Angeles. It also mentions that there were carbon dioxide filled tube signs prior to that date.

http://inventors.about.com/library/weekly/aa980107.htm

http://www.texasescapes.com/TexasPhotography/TexasOldNeon.htm

Found another link This one is an overall history of advertising signs

http://www.signmuseum.com/exhibits/histories/brfhist/briefhistory.html

[Anonymous]

From the context of your message, i.e. 1962, I assume the "modern" translucent signage with fluorescent lights behind the plastic, as films of NYC around WW II show neon signs everywhere.

I can remember a W T Grant store in my hometown with such a fluorescent sign as early as 1965 (my earliest memories), and it was probably years old then, as the original store on the property (not a Grant store) burned in 1954. Fluorescents came out in the 1950s, I think, (and possibly the 30s) so it wouldn't take long for that to be applied to sign lighting.