This restaurant opened in 1973 as the Lincoln Street Cafe by Don "London" Martin. He was nicknamed after his birthplace. Over time patrons began referring to the cafe as "London's place" and after an ownership change in 2009, the business was named to simply "London's". The restaurant is in a historic 1930's building which could have lead to the installation of the vintage sign. You'll see it on North Wall Street in Tullahoma, TN

I'm not sure how this classic pizza-holding mascot ended up in front of this Little Caesars store. The 12 foot fiberglass statues were introduced in 1962 in Michigan, but the company stopped producing them in the 1980's and this store did not open until some time in the 2000's. Maybe this is just a case of a franchise embracing it's history by refurbishing one of the classic statues or having one made. Whatever the case, it made me smile to see this cool piece of history on d

Similar to the neighboring Rock City's famous barn sign campaign, Ruby Falls owner offered farmers a free coat of paint in exchange for painting their advertisement on the barn roof. The same sign painter, Clark Byers, painted these signs beginning in the 1930's soon after the attraction opened. This one has a Ruby Falls ad on one side and a Rock City ad on the other side that is visible from Interstate 40. This side reads "Ruby Falls Lookout MT Chattanooga". You can see it o

Surviving on an early 1900's building is the W.T. Reed Groceries advertisement along with a vintage Coca-Cola sign and Bake with Wild Goose Flour ad. The grocery store was operated by Tom and Sallie Reed from the early 1920's through the 1960's. The building is currently being used by a gift shop. I'm not sure if the lions across the top of the building were original but they are an interesting touch. You'll find this historic reminder of what was once the towns only grocery

This is one of a few surviving barn signs created as an advertising campaign started in 1935 by Rock City founder Garnet Carter, using barn roof paintings to attract travelers to his Lookout Mountain attraction in Chattanooga. A young sign painter named Clark Byers traveled the highways in 19 states offering to paint farmers' barns for free in exchange for putting the ads on the roofs. By 1969 he had painted around 900 barns and it is estimated that only about 60 remain. I do

This giant auto mechanic is located at the entry gate of the CFC Auto Salvage Pick & Pull salvage yard. It is fabricated from repurposed metal, keeping in line with the yard's metal recycling operations. He's holding a perpetually spinning wrench to catch the attention of drivers passing by. He's sure to catch yours if you drive by on New Manchester Highway in Tullahoma, TN

This giant fiberglass statue arrived at the Chattanooga Family Fun Center during the 1970s, an era when many Muffler Men were being repurposed or, sadly, discarded nationwide. He currently stands alongside the Go-Kart track as a pit crew member ready with a spare tire and wrench. You'll find him there on Brainerd Rd in Chattanooga, TN

This theatre began in 1926 and has been in this location since 1935. In 1931 the owners, James and Tillie Cardwell, used a record player to add sound which was timed to scenes in the films shown in their theatre. They continued this practice until 1939. By this time, most films were made with sound. Today, the Oldham Theater doesn't smell like popcorn anymore, and the rows of velvet seats have been cleared out to make room for community gatherings, private rentals, and regula

This very well preserved advertisement is for an old fashioned five and dime type store that was opened in Woodbury in 1936 and became Fuston's when it was purchased by Roy & Modena Fuston in 1952. They ran the store until it closed in 1990. I would have loved to have visited the store just because of the tag line "Enough Said"! You can see this piece of roadside advertising history on Auburntown Road, north of Woodbury, TN

I thought this was somehow associated to Dinty Moore canned stew, but learned that it was a man's name and he opened this restaurant around the 1930's. He ran it for around 30 years and it was run by others until some time in the 1980's. I am not sure if it was always in this location, but this building was built in 1955. The Coca-Cola sign on the front of the building says Regal Begal Restaurant. I thought this was a funny coincidence, or perhaps not, as both Dinty Moore and

These homeowners decided to preserve this piece of history by displaying it prominently in their front yard. I am particularly fond of the placement of the vintage Texaco signage on the front door beneath the classic crescent moon ventilation. And of course, the porch goose. Typically a sign of welcome, but in this case I got the impression that he was standing sentry duty. Be sure to watch for this outhouse south of town on Cosby Highway in Newport, TN

This pawn business was established in 1989 in a building that appears to be perhaps the office of an old motel. The building is surrounded by a U-shaped row of small cottage type dwellings that were a popular design of 1940's and 1950's motels. Sadly, I was unable to find any solid historical information about the building. It's a very cool design with rounded corners and artistic brick work around the roof line. You'll see it on West Broadway Street in Newport, TN

This is one of those places that you might see in a Hallmark movie. It is the oldest continually operating business in the county. It began in 1911 in this great red brick building with the fancy roofline brickwork and yellow diamond design. Founded by Dr. Tinsley and his pharmacist nephew, then joined in 1933 by pharmacist Lloyd Bible hitching the two names together as they still are today. In 1942 the store expanded and added the historic lunch counter and soda fountain whe

On the abandoned Miller's Creek property, is this vintage 1920's Dodge open-cab fire truck. It sits under an old fashioned rustic lean-to structure that is accompanied by a vintage porcelain Pure Oil Company sign. This and other vintage memorabilia have been left at the location of a carefully planned out rustic experience that never opened. You'll find it on Milldale Road in Dandridge, TN

I happened to spot this interesting looking building while making a gas stop. The Big Chief neon sign mounted on the building is in great shape but it appeared that whatever the building had been, it had been closed for some time. As it turns out, it actually never opened. The property has been carefully adorned with vintage memorabilia and was one man's vision that was never fulfilled. The neon sign was originally used at the Big Chief Motel in Bean Station, TN. The building

Since 2011, this towering pale green saguaro cactus, rising out of the asphalt, has been the mascot for Cinco Amigos Mexican Restaurant. The building behind the sign perfectly matches the signs energy and color. It's not hard to spot this giant cactus on North Willow Avenue in Cookeville, TN

This store had it's beginnings during the scandalous reign of Governor Ray Blanton. The Oak Liquor store was tied to a retail liquor license application by R.B. Sowell in 1977. The Blanton administration was infamous for corruption in regards to the illegal sale of these licenses. Blanton was eventually convicted of conspiracy, mail fraud and extortion for controlling who received highly sought-after retail liquor store licenses. This could, of course, have no connection to t

Not far behind the Lucky Community Center, at the edge of the woods, sits this two stall outhouse. Hopefully they have indoor facilities as well. You'd have to be in a pretty desperate situation to use these. Not much comfort with no seat in one stall and a broken one in the other, not to mention the lack of privacy. You'll find this little treasure from the past on Lucky Road north of McMinnville, TN

Sitting up on a hillside along an old country road, we found this patriotic character, gently swinging in the breeze, proudly sporting his bright red MAGA hat. I couldn't make out what the plaque at the top of the swing said, but it looked like it could be a name, Colby Something? Not sure what he's doing up there, but my first guess would be warding off any liberals who may have wandered too far into the Tennessee hills. Whatever he's doing, all I can say is, "This is why I

In front of the Tuckers Crossroads Antiques Store is this great vintage gas station sign from the American Oil Company, which later became widely known as Amoco. The store closed several years ago, but this great piece of the US petroleum industry history remains. You can see it on Trousdale Ferry Pike in Tuckers Crossroads, TN