Encyclopedia Dubuque
"Encyclopedia Dubuque is the online authority for all things Dubuque, written by the people who know the city best.”
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Affiliated with the Local History Network of the State Historical Society of Iowa, and the Iowa Museum Association.
PAINTED BULLETINS
PAINTED BULLETINS. At the beginning of the twentieth century, advertisements were often painted on walls. One such firm in the business was the Thomas Cusack Company of Chicago.
A painting crew would come to town, choose a wall, sign a lease with the owner and paint the sign. Two men could accomplish the work in two days before they would pack up and move to another town or site.
The signs were called "painted bulletins." The painters had a 'Pounce Pattern' like a large dress pattern that they would stick to the wall and outline with chalk. The signs were too elaborate and large to draw freehand.
In Dubuque one of the largest painted bulletins was located in 1970 at Ninth and Main. The sign for Coca Cola was painted around 1918 or 1919. It covered an estimated 6,325 bricks and was the work of the Cusack Company. The sign advertised "nickel Cokes" (mentioned in DUBUQUE BLUES by the Association) which disappeared in 1953 because of inflation. The "delicious and refreshing" slogan was dropped in 1929. "Sold everywhere" was dropped around 1950.
The wall on which the sign was painted was demolished during URBAN RENEWAL.
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Source:
Brimeyer, Jack. "We Bid Fond Farewell to a Sign of the Times," Telegraph Herald, July 24, 1970, p. 15
