The Pillsbury A-Mill, completed in 1881 on the east bank of the Mississippi River, was once the largest flour mill in the world and a symbol of Minneapolis’s dominance in global grain production. Designed by architect LeRoy Buffington and engineer William de la Barre, the mill harnessed the power of St. Anthony Falls to grind over 5,000 barrels of flour a day at its peak. Its innovative use of water turbines, reinforced limestone walls, and massive storage elevators represented the cutting edge of 19th-century milling technology. Today, the restored complex — now repurposed as artist lofts — stands as a National Historic Landmark and a reminder of the city’s industrial ingenuity.

SoHo Cafe on Hennepin Avenue in Minneapolis during major road construction.

Patrons sit outside the Bryant Lake Bowl on Lake Street on a summer night.

Lighting on the Waldforf Towers Hotel in South Beach.

Colony Hotel sign in South Beach, Miami Florida.

The Starlite Hotel lit up at night during 2025 Spring Break in South Beach.

The Starlite hotel neon sign in South Beach, Florida.

Showboat Saloon in Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin.

Whiskey Junction bar on Cedar Ave without the longtime Jack Daniels mural. The bar closed in 2017 and was bought months later by The Joint Bar next door.

Orpheum Theatre on Hennepin Avenue in downtown Minneapolis. January 2024.

Beetlejuice at the Orpheum Theatre in downtown Minneapolis in September 2023.

Neon sign on Lyndale Avenue in Minneapolis.

Franklin-Nicollet Liquor Store in Minneapolis.

The iconic neon sign of Yodobashi Camera’s head store in Shinjuku is seen from street level, with its mix of Japanese and English lettering. The large retro-style signage, lined with anti-bird spikes, reflects the store’s long-standing presence as one of Tokyo’s biggest electronics retailers. Yodobashi Camera’s Shinjuku West Exit location serves as the flagship branch, anchoring the city’s vast camera and tech shopping district.

One of the few surviving original McDonald’s neon signs still standing in the United States is located in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Installed during the era before the Golden Arches fully defined the brand, the sign features “Speedee,” the chain’s early mascot introduced in the 1950s to promote the company’s streamlined “Speedee Service System.” The illuminated red-and-yellow marquee—advertising hamburgers and boasting “Over 100 Million Sold”—reflects the rapid national expansion of the franchise during its formative years. Today it serves as both a functioning restaurant sign and a preserved piece of mid-century fast-food history.

The glowing neon “EAT” sign at Al’s Hamburgers stands out against the snowy backdrop of winter in Minneapolis. The sign, with its bright mid-century colors and bold lettering, has been part of the business’s identity since the diner opened in 1934. Its classic styling reflects the era when small neighborhood restaurants relied on eye-catching storefront signs to draw in passing traffic. Light snow gathers on the striped awning below, adding a seasonal layer to one of the area’s longstanding local landmarks.

Lyn-Lake Barber Shop on Lyndale Avenue in South Minneapolis.

A classic vertical “PARK” marquee glows in red and magenta neon, marking one of downtown Minneapolis’s older parking structures that date back to the mid-20th century. These illuminated signs were once a staple of the city’s core, guiding drivers through the dense commercial grid before digital wayfinding and modern garages became standard. Many of these vintage markers survive as quiet architectural artifacts, attached to early high-rise buildings constructed during the postwar retail boom. Their hand-bent tubing and heavy steel housings reflect a period when neon craftsmanship was central to the city’s nighttime identity, especially along corridors near Nicollet Avenue, Hennepin Avenue, and the warehouse district.

The large yellow “NSP” letters seen here belong to the historic Northern States Power Company generating station in Red Wing, Minnesota. Perched along the Mississippi River just north of downtown, the plant was once a key part of the regional electrical grid operated by NSP—now Xcel Energy. Although much of the facility has been retired or repurposed, the tall brick stacks and the weathered rooftop lettering remain some of the most recognizable industrial features on Red Wing’s riverfront.

Built in the mid-20th century, the station reflects an era when coal-fired plants lined major waterways to take advantage of cooling capacity and barge-delivered fuel. The surrounding corridor, including the nearby railway and grain terminals, has long formed one of Red Wing’s primary industrial zones. Today, while the plant no longer plays the role it once did, the NSP letters survive as a visual marker of the city’s energy-production past.

Brit's Pub on Nicollet Mall in Minneapolis.