Vintage Central Florida, Part 7

The last photo I recently uncovered from the series is the Olde Dixie Fried Chicken restaurant sign. From what I can tell, the restaurant is still around. And from street level, it appears the sign has been fully restored.

5925 South Orlando Avenue, Orlando, Florida

Vintage Central Florida, Part 6

It’s easy to see from a quick Google Maps search that the building that once housed Arnold Paint & Wallpaper still exists, but the sign is gone, the façade’s been painted, and the space looks empty. That’s too bad.

538 North Bumby Avenue, Orlando, Florida

Vintage Central Florida, Part 5

In our basement cleaning, I uncovered more of the vintage Orlando sign pictures I snapped back in 1998. The ones I originally blogged about two years ago (found here, here, here, and here) were the ones I had framed and on display at various times in our homes over the years. These few that I recently found are the cast-offs that didn’t click for me, but I figured they deserve an audience here.

First up is the Mills & Nebraska Lumber sign. Originally located at the corner of (you guessed it) Mills Avenue and Nebraska Street, from what I can tell on Google Maps, it looks like the whole place has been razed, but here’s a picture of the sign from 13 years ago.

1602 North Mills Avenue, Orlando, Florida

Vintage Central Florida, Part 4

Probably my favorite sign of the bunch, the Beefy King was also a favorite place to grab a bite to eat for lunch when I was a bachelor and lived nearby. And, unlike a lot of the signs I shot back in '98, it appears to still be in business (and it damn well should be!).

424 North Bumby Avenue, Orlando, Florida

Vintage Central Florida, Part 3

Here's another vintage Central Florida sign. This time, it's the old McNamara Pontiac sign on West Colonial (SR 50) in Orlando. When I took the picture back in 1998, the dealership sat on the corner of Colonial and Orange Blossom Trail. Some exploration on Google Maps again and it appears the lot is now vacant, but the sign still stands tall. You can check out the full-color glory of it if you stroll down Google Maps' street view, but I still prefer the black and white version I took 11 years ago.

1010 West Colonial Drive, Orlando, Florida

Vintage Central Florida, Part 2

Continuing with the photos of vintage Central Florida signs I shot back in 1998, here are a couple from Winter Park. They stand next to each other on North Orlando Avenue. A little exploring with street level view on Google Maps and it appears that the Tom & Jerry’s sign no longer sports the cartoon cat and mouse, and the Richie’s Economy Cars sign is now Signature Auto, but fronting a vacant lot. Time keeps on changing the landscape.

1117 North Orlando Avenue, Winter Park, Florida

1111 North Orlando Avenue, Winter Park, Florida

Vintage Central Florida, Part 1

I lived in Central Florida for ten years. And outside of all the touristy crap, beyond the Mouse and the princesses, there is a whole other world. Leftovers from a time before Orlando became a transients’ city and overflowing with displaced Northerners (myself included at the time). In 1998 I struck out with a camera, some black and white film and the intent to capture a handful of those roadside icons. I had them printed and framed in a couple of our apartments over the years, but here, 11 years later, I’m sharing my amateur photography skills with the World Wide Web. Enjoy this first installment!

2133 West Colonial Drive, Orlando, Florida