The International Wall Art and Mural Museum in Pontiac, Illinois

I liked it so much I bought the company. Get your kicks on Route 66. You press the button - we do the rest. Reach out and touch someone. Melts in your mouth, not on your fingers.The Uncola.The Real Thing. You'll wonder where the yellow went. Reach for the jars with the stars on top.You only go around once in life, so grab for all the gusto you can. It takes a licking and keeps on ticking. What'll you have, old time flavor. Merrill Lynch is bullish on America. We make money the old-fashioned way, We earn it. The best part of wakin' up.

Advertisers down through the years have spent quite a bit of time, and sometimes money, creating sign art and murals with company names and slogans.

Now you can see both historic and modern company names, slogans, and art work at The International Wall Art and Mural Museum in Pontiac, Illinois. The museum, owned by the City of Pontiac and funded by a Tif grant, opened its doors May 1, 2010. Located at 217 North Mill St., across from the historic Empire style Livingston County courthouse, the museum is open May - October, Monday - Friday: 9 AM to 5 PM and Saturday and Sunday from 10 AM to 4 PM.

The International Walldog Mural & Sign Art Museum is dedicated to the preservation and appreciation of the outdoor wall advertising signs painted in the days before electronic mass media. The painters who created those early signs called themselves "Walldogs."

The signs, murals, and artwork, on loan from artists from around the world, bring back pleasant childhood memories for many, and educate others about the creativity of artists from the past and present.

The displays which are found at the museum tell the history of the early sign painters who created their art on the sides of brick buildings, barns, and other structures. Examples of those early signs can still be seen throughout the Midwest and, though faded, peeling, and sometimes barely readable, these "ghost signs" remain an important part of our collective cultural and commercial history.

The museum provides tours geared to different age groups. Last week, the museum curator, Kristen Mehlenberg, gave a presentation and tour to sixth graders and their teacher, who toured the musem as part of a field trip. The group was also shown a movie about the history of sign and mural art. Admission to the museum is free. Mehlenberg stated that the museum also provides hands-on experience in painting Barns Quilts, which will be displayed through out Livingston County.

For more information, email tourism@pontiac.org.

If you think you know the names of the companies that used the slogans at the beginning of this article, write them in the comments. We'll see if you are correct.

Sources:

The International Walldog Mural & Sign Art Museum, http://visitpontiac.org/webpages/index.php?art=522