"Don't let the title fool you. It's about more than street signs: it's about life in the big city; it's about history and the loss of history; it's about neighborhoods that were and never were, but still could be; it's about illusion and the real thing...." Studs Terkel.

A showcase of London’s street nameplates – from the curious to the ornate. All around London, you can find a remarkable public archive of lettering in the city’s street nameplates. A unique collection of styles and forms that stretches back to the 17th century, these little labels hide in plain sight – we use their information daily, but too often fail to really notice them. And they aren’t just visual anchors, telling us where we are; but temporal anchors too, telling us where we’ve come from. This expertly curated collection documents the most significant, beautiful and curious street signs, from enamel plates to incised lettering, the simplest cast iron signs to gloriously ornamental architectural plaques. It’s a visual and typographical journey through the history of a great metropolis. Along the way, the fascinating stories behind these unassuming treasures are uncovered, revealing where they came from before being affixed to brick or stone for decades to come. We’re introduced to the iconic nameplates of the City of Westminster, the stunning tiled signs of Hampstead and the revival nameplates of Lambeth, as well as the ghost signs of the no-longer existent NE postal district. London Street Signs is a striking visual record of our collective history that will appeal to design and history enthusiasts alike.

Does your little one love street signs? Finally, a book that explains in simple language what the most common signs mean. Filled with full-color photographs of popular street signs. Text at the bottom of each page makes it easy to point out words to developing readers.

Its a world in motion. Across the globe people are moving in unprecedented proportions from rural communities to urban centers. This explosion of growth and all the complexities it brings is not to be seen as a problem for churches, but as a giftan opportunity to work with God within the city to see His purposes worked out. Street Signs is a guide for church missions leaders and community ministry leaders seeking to bring spiritual and practical transformation to the city. Ray Bakke and Jon Sharpe offer transferable models that come from consultations held in over 200 world cities with church, business, government, and other leaders that provide approaches for Gods people who want to love their own cities from the inside out. They also provide a practical and inspirational guide to enable leaders to become volunteer consultants, bringing together church and city leaders to mobilize resources for the transformation of the city.

Explains how neighborhood signs help people stay safe, drive safely, and find their way around. Suggested level: junior.

Treu tackles the architectural history and signage of Main Street and the strip—from painted boards nailed over crude storefronts to sleek cinemas topped with neon glitz. Honorable Mention, Architecture and Urban Planning, 2012 PROSE Awards Signs, Streets, and Storefronts addresses more than 200 years of signs and place-marking along America’s commercial corridors. From small-town squares to Broadway, State Street, and Wilshire Boulevard, Martin Treu follows design developments into the present and explores issues of historic preservation. Treu considers “common” architecture and its place-defining business signs as well as influential high-style design examples by taste-making leaders. Combining advertising and architectural history, the book presents a full picture of the commercial landscape, including design adaptations made for motorists and the migration from Main Street to suburbia. The dynamic between individual businesses and the common good has a major effect on the appearance of our country's Main Streets. Several forces are at work: technological advances, design imagination and the media, corporate propaganda, customer needs, and municipal mandates. Present-day controls have often led to a denuding of traditional commercial corridors. Such reform, Treu argues, has suppressed originality and radically cleared away years of accumulated history based on the taste of a single generation. A must-read for city planners, town councils, architects, sign designers, concerned citizens, and anyone who cares about the appearance and vitality of America’s commercial streets, this heavily illustrated book is equally appealing to armchair historians, small-town enthusiasts, and lovers of Americana.

John Baeder, author of the classic books of roadside Americana, Diners and Gas, Food and Lodging, has a particular passion for handmade street signs. Collected here are 205 of Baeder's photographs of his favorite signs. Baeder's text offers revealing observations about folk are and real life and tells the reader much about letterforms, composition, and brushwork. But, more importantly, the author finds many of these signs true "cries from the heart", and his personal responses add new meanings to these simple, and often touching, public declarations. Reading this book will add pleasure to car trips and casual walks on city streets.

The Tex-Mex restaurant's famous marquee sign, whose black letters tell a new joke to passing motorists each day, is featured in "El Arroyo's Big Book of Signs: Volume One." 158 signs to enjoy8"x8" Hardback