'The bright lights of Americana': American Sign Museum set to double in size

Perhaps it’s a sign of success.

The American Sign Museum in Camp Washington is set to open its 20,000-square-foot expansion to the public on Saturday.

Executive Director David Dupee said the addition doubles the size of the museum, bringing the total collection to 800 signs and more than 4,000 pieces.

“The bright lights of Americana really resonate with everyone,” Dupee said. “So to be able to double that experience is really exciting.”

The expansion adds to the “Main Street” of the museum, where facades for various buildings are intermixed with signs of various sizes. The space includes the tallest sign in the museum, a 21-foot Johnny’s Big Red Grill sign for an eatery near Cornell University in Ithaca, New York.

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The expansion has been in the works since before the COVID-19 pandemic, Dupee said. It cost $5.5 million, funded by donors and government grants.

“Cincinnati has this rich history of advertising and branding. So I think it's only fitting in the largest public sign museum in the country is right here,” Dupee said.

The museum is more than just a place for signs to hang for posterity. It’s the only place in our area where the neon art form is being kept alive.

“It really is a dying art form,” Dupee said. “We’re passionate about preserving that artistry.”

Tom Wartman is one of the people helping with the preservation. As director of Neonworks, a neon sign shop within the museum, he helps keep the art form alive.

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The shop works on all of the signs for the museum, in addition to custom designs for businesses, man caves, and other locations.

Wartman said only about 300 to 500 people are skilled in the neon craft, though he would eventually like the museum to teach more people through educational programming.

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“It’s not a mainstream craft anymore, and so we need a museum.”

The museum has become a tourist magnet. Outside the Camp Washington facility Thursday were three families from Pennsylvania, Maryland and Virginia who went out of their way to see something uniquely “American.”

The final touches are underway before the new wing opens to the public on Saturday.

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“If they can walk away with appreciation of signs, then that's a good day for us,” said Dupee.