Northwesterners likely remember the eye-catchingly stellar General Lumber sign that stood atop the building at the lumber yard of the same name at 6001 N. 91st St. for 50 years.
The building dates to 1952 and the sign to 1960.
In fact, the sign has been there yet another decade since the store closed in 2010, too. Now, the owner of the property – which serves as a school bus parking lot – and the sign is looking to sell it and find it a new home.
To that end, he’s working with Adam Levin, author of "Fading Ads of Milwaukee" book and moderator of a number of popular Facebook groups to sell the distinctive sign. Levin has also helped find homes for other signs, including one that long hung outside Goldmann’s on Mitchell Street.
Nate Plotkin, who runs the WhyMKE Instagram account is also helping spread the word.
The star-shaped sign is maroon and yellow with a quintet of smaller stars – in green, orange, blue, yellow and red – orbiting the main one.
Here's a video of the sign:
"(We) are working to ensure that this piece of history does not end up in a scrap yard, and melted for parts like many signs before it," Plotkin wrote in an email. "If you have any properties that you think could be interested in purchasing the sign, please let me know and I will get you in contact."
If you’re interested in purchasing the sign, email me and I’ll connect you.
The owner, who wishes to remain anonymous, says Levin, who adds, "he would prefer to sell it to someone local, doesn’t matter to him how they display it.
"He did’t share a set price, so he’s open to offers."
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He has be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.
