In February 2012 I stumbled upon a trove of company documents from the 1940s and 1950s at a demolition site in Footscray, Melbourne. Here I tell the stories associated with those documents: the records of signwriting company Lewis & Skinner, and the tattered books of correspondence connected with writer Morris West and the radio serial company he started and ran, Australasian Radio Productions. Plus the more general exploration of 'ghost signs' that my discovery has sparked.
Saturday, February 28, 2015
Friday, February 27, 2015
A backlog of signs
I'm finally getting around to posting about a bunch of signs collected over the last months. Here's the first motley lot. More to come soon :)
First, central Melbourne:
Brunswick:
Coburg:
Reservoir:
Some creative reuse behind Regent Street:
North Melbourne:
Prahran:
Parkville:
Preston: ghost cafe. Very keen to check this place out:
Footscray - yes, it's a ghost sign now:
Richmond:
And lastly, one from the country (Gippsland):
First, central Melbourne:
Brunswick:
Coburg:
Reservoir:
Some creative reuse behind Regent Street:
North Melbourne:
Prahran:
Parkville:
Preston: ghost cafe. Very keen to check this place out:
Footscray - yes, it's a ghost sign now:
Richmond:
And lastly, one from the country (Gippsland):
Thursday, February 26, 2015
Follow up article on the recent ABC ghost signs interview
Here's a bit more written stuff on the ABC ghost sign interview with Nick Gadd and Stephen Banham:
http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/blueprintforliving/ghost-sign-hunters/6261838
http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/blueprintforliving/ghost-sign-hunters/6261838
Friday, February 20, 2015
Ghost sign interview this morning on Radio National with Nick Gadd and Stephen Banham
Nice interview today - you can read about it and listen back to it here:
http://www.abc.net.au/radio/programitem/pgzE7J45w6
http://www.abc.net.au/radio/programitem/pgzE7J45w6
Tuesday, February 3, 2015
The rest of the Adelaide ghost signs
Continuing on from the last post with Port Adelaide ghost signs... here are the rest of the signs I found during my recent SA visit.
Firstly, Semaphore. Plus a few more in the nearby Port:
Not ghost signs, but a couple of great old-school Port Adelaide milk bars:
Next, Bowden/Brompton:
On the road to Hallett Cove (you can't see the sign too well though...):
A great shop on Payneham Road in St Peters:
And way north in Gawler:
Firstly, Semaphore. Plus a few more in the nearby Port:
Not ghost signs, but a couple of great old-school Port Adelaide milk bars:
Next, Bowden/Brompton:
On the road to Hallett Cove (you can't see the sign too well though...):
A great shop on Payneham Road in St Peters: