An old view of the Canadian Club Distillery sign that was located along the Windsor waterfront. The photo above is from my personal collection, and dates to about 1915. The sign was built in 1900 and was covered in 4,300 lightbulbs and flashed the message to our neighbours across the river. It was 120 feet wide by 76 feet high, it was reputed to be the first electric advertising sign to be built of structural steel. The sign in fact contained 22 tons of steel and cost $15,000 in 1900. With the onset of WWII and the need to save energy the sign went dark in 1939.
After sitting dark since 1939, attempts were made for the royal visit in 1959 to light the sign up once again. It was however, during those attempts that the sign was discovered to no longer be structurally sound, and in 1960, the sign was removed. A new neon sign was erected of top of the silos to replace this one, but today that one is also gone.
I just want to take this moment to wish all my readers a safe and happy holiday season. While 2020 sure didn’t turn out like many expected, it’s been a pleasure to be back here with you all. Stay safe, and we’ll see you back here for Monday, January 4, 2021.
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