The Route 66 Association of Kingman has begun the restoration of several historic neon signs and created new signs for businesses in Kingman, Arizona.
According to a recent news release from the association:
Through a partnership with Legacy Signs, they have provided new signage for various organizations and businesses such as the non-profit Luv of Paws and the Route 66 Car Wash, and instituted an ambitious plan for the restoration, replication, and acquisition of historic neon signs.
A current project, in partnership with the Graves family, is the restoration of a circa 1930 Packard dealership sign that will accentuate the facade renovations of the Old Trails Garage built more than a century ago. Scheduled for restoration in the coming months are a 1930s sign donated by the Mohave Museum of History & Arts, and signs from the Brandin’ Iron Motel and Desert Drug.
Another neon sign that will be restored is one for El Trovatore that stood in the pre-1949 alignment of Route 66. El Trovatore once was an unincorporated area that eventually was swallowed up by Kingman.
The name now is strongly associated with the historic El Trovatore Motel that sits in the area.
The association also recently with the local True Value hardware store began an anti-graffiti initiative for downtown and started an ongoing mural program, with funding from the Hualapai tribe.
(Images of the Packard and El Trovatore signs courtesy of Jim Hinckley)
I am interested in the Graves Family and the story of the Old Trails Garage. I am finishing a historic adventure novel about a 1915 trip across the U.S. on the National Old Trails Road and i want to include every possible historic business and structure.