Hand-painted signs on the north and south sides of the Grand Forks Gazette building at 7330 2nd St. advertise both its current and former use.
Erected in 1903 as the Club Saloon, the building later became a garage. A badly faded sign on the south side says “City Garage/Premier Gasoline.” (The garage’s bay doors were where the glass tiles are now on the front of the building.)
The newspaper moved into the building in 1931. The yellow and black sign on the north side reads “The Gazette/Printers & Publishers.” It was painted by 1943 and must have been touched up over the years, because the colours are still vibrant. Also interesting is how some utility poles that cross the sign have been painted over to match.
The Gazette vacated this building in May 2005 and moved to Riverside Drive, but fortunately no one saw fit to paint over the sign, because in May 2013 the newspaper moved back to its old home. This is the second instance of a local phantom sign coming back into style — something similar happened with the Hume Hotel in Nelson.
Below: the Gazette office, date unknown. The Province Hotel, which burned down in 1987, is seen in the background. (Greg Nesteroff collection)
— With thanks to longtime Gazette employee Della Mallette
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