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Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...
,
Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...
,
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
, features signs from old casinos and other businesses displayed outdoors on . Efforts to establish a neon sign museum were underway in the late 1980s, but stalled due to a lack of resources. On September 18, 1996, the
Las Vegas City Council Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County, Nevada, Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave De ...
voted to fund such a project, to be known as The Neon Museum. The organization started out by re-installing old signage in
downtown Las Vegas Downtown Las Vegas (commonly abbreviated as DTLV) is the central business district and historic center of Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. It is the original townsite, and the Downtown gaming Las Vegas, Downtown Gaming Area was the primary gambl ...
, to attract more visitors to the area.
Young Electric Sign Company YESCO is a manufacturer of electric signs based in Salt Lake City, founded by Thomas Young in 1920. The company provides design, fabrication, installation and maintenance of signs. Many notable sign projects have been produced by YESCO, inc ...
(YESCO) had manufactured many neon signs in the city, and the company had a storage site for old signs, which would eventually become part of the Neon Museum collection. In 2000, as YESCO prepared to close its storage lot, the city provided the museum with land to start its own. Tours of the new site, known as the Neon Boneyard, began in 2001, by appointment only. The lobby of the former
La Concha Motel The La Concha Motel was a motel that opened in 1961 and closed in 2004. It was designed by architect Paul Williams (architect), Paul Williams who was one of the first prominent African American architects in the United States and was also the ar ...
, located on the
Las Vegas Strip The Las Vegas Strip is a stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard in Clark County, Nevada, that is known for its concentration of resort hotels and casinos. The Strip, as it is known, is about long, and is immediately south of the Las Vegas city limits ...
, was donated to the museum and moved there in 2006, eventually becoming its visitor center. Construction to convert the lobby began in May 2011, and the museum officially opened to the general public on October 27, 2012, eliminating the appointment system. The Neon Museum's collection includes more than 200 signs. An expansion of the museum site began in 2017, although hundreds of neon artifacts still remained in off-site storage due to space limitations. In 2024, the museum announced plans to relocate to two larger, nearby sites at 18b The Las Vegas Arts District. The project will include relocation of the La Concha lobby, and the museum is expected to open in the new locations around 2027.


History


Background

Neon signage in
Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...
dates to the 1920s, and saw a significant increase in popularity, especially among hotel-casinos, during the 1930s. Many signs were manufactured by
Young Electric Sign Company YESCO is a manufacturer of electric signs based in Salt Lake City, founded by Thomas Young in 1920. The company provides design, fabrication, installation and maintenance of signs. Many notable sign projects have been produced by YESCO, inc ...
(YESCO). In the 1970s, some locals advocated for the preservation of the city's neon signage. The
Sands Hotel and Casino The Sands Hotel and Casino was a historic hotel and casino on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada, United States, that operated from 1952 to 1996. Designed by architect Wayne McAllister, with a prominent high sign, the Sands was the seve ...
, located on the
Las Vegas Strip The Las Vegas Strip is a stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard in Clark County, Nevada, that is known for its concentration of resort hotels and casinos. The Strip, as it is known, is about long, and is immediately south of the Las Vegas city limits ...
, demolished its original neon sign in 1981, as part of a renovation. Calls for neon preservation became more prominent after the sign's removal. The locally based Allied Arts Council had been contacted by a Sands employee about saving the sign, but it lacked the necessary equipment and storage space to do so. In 1989, Allied Arts and its director, Patrick Gaffey, were working to establish a museum known then as the Neon Park, with 5th Street Liquor Store donating the first neon sign to the project. The sign, added in the late 1940s, had become well known among locals; it depicts a hand pouring a bottle of alcohol into a glass. Allied Arts set a site for the museum along North Las Vegas Boulevard, near
Cashman Field Cashman Field is a stadium in downtown Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. It is primarily used for soccer as the home field of Las Vegas Lights FC of the USL Championship. Originally built as a baseball stadium, it was the home of the Triple-A ...
. By 1991, the group had begun storing old signs for the future museum. Some were stored in the Nevada desert, and others were kept at YESCO's Las Vegas facility. In 1994, as Allied Arts struggled to obtain financing, the Southern Nevada Cultural Arts Foundation announced its own neon museum proposal. It would be built at the intersection of
Sunset Road Sunset (or sundown) is the disappearance of the Sun at the end of the Sun path, below the horizon of the Earth (or any other astronomical object in the Solar System) due to its rotation. As viewed from everywhere on Earth, it is a phenomenon th ...
and Eastern Avenue, with an opening expected in mid-1995. However, this project also stalled. In 1995, Gaffey said about the Allied Arts project, "Our problem was we never had the manpower to devote to really getting it off the ground." Las Vegas mayor Jan Jones was supportive of a neon museum. In 1995, she recruited city employee Barbara Molasky to help make it a reality. According to Molasky in 2001, "The idea for a neon museum has been around for 20 or 30 years, and just for all kinds of logistics was never able to come together."


Formation and early years

On September 18, 1996, the
Las Vegas City Council Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County, Nevada, Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave De ...
approved the use of $150,000 in redevelopment funds toward the establishment of the Neon Museum. Despite the name, the project lacked a physical facility, which was deemed too costly at the time. Instead, the Neon Museum would focus initially on the re-installation of old neon signs along North Las Vegas Boulevard, helping to attract more visitors to
downtown Las Vegas Downtown Las Vegas (commonly abbreviated as DTLV) is the central business district and historic center of Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. It is the original townsite, and the Downtown gaming Las Vegas, Downtown Gaming Area was the primary gambl ...
and the new
Fremont Street Experience The Fremont Street Experience (FSE) is a pedestrian mall and attraction in downtown Las Vegas, Nevada. The FSE occupies the westernmost five blocks of Fremont Street, including the area known for years as "Glitter Gulch", and portions of som ...
. The
Hacienda A ''hacienda'' ( or ; or ) is an estate (or '' finca''), similar to a Roman '' latifundium'', in Spain and the former Spanish Empire. With origins in Andalusia, ''haciendas'' were variously plantations (perhaps including animals or orchards ...
resort on the Las Vegas Strip had previously featured a popular neon sign depicting a cowboy on a horse, commonly known as the Horse & Rider sign. It sat in storage for years, and was refurbished by the Neon Museum at a cost of $60,000. It was re-installed and lit up on November 13, 1996, in a new location at the intersection of North Las Vegas Boulevard and
Fremont Street Fremont Street is a street in Downtown Las Vegas, downtown Las Vegas, Nevada that is the second-most famous street in both the Las Vegas Valley and in the state of Nevada, after the Las Vegas Strip. It is named in honor of explorer and politicia ...
. It marked the first project for the Neon Museum, which would be incorporated by the city as a
nonprofit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...
in 1997. Molasky is the founding president of the Neon Museum. In preparation for an eventual museum facility, she and the organization's 18-member volunteer board sought advice from the similar Museum of Neon Art in Los Angeles. The city had a deal to acquire signage from YESCO's storage lot for the new museum. Some of the signs had become severely rusted because of exposure to the elements, and private donations would be responsible for restoring them. The storage lot and various signs had made film appearances in ''
Mars Attacks! ''Mars Attacks!'' is a 1996 American science fiction film, science fiction black comedy, black comedy film directed by Tim Burton, who also co-produced it with Larry J. Franco. The screenplay by Jonathan Gems was based on the Topps trading ca ...
'' (1996) and ''
Vegas Vacation ''Vegas Vacation'' is a 1997 American comedy film directed by Stephen Kessler in his feature directorial debut. It is the fourth installment in '' National Lampoon''’s ''Vacation'' film series, and was written by Elisa Bell, based on a story ...
'' (1997). The site later received dozens of tour requests every week that had to be turned down; YESCO lacked the time needed to give tours, and the frequent requests were one reason for the company's support of the Neon Museum. YESCO eventually made plans to close its storage lot, allowing more room for its sign manufacturing. In 2000, the city council granted the Neon Museum a site on North Las Vegas Boulevard, near Cashman Field, to store its neon collection. The site was , and with adjacent land located just south, the museum later expanded to . The site, located north of Fremont Street, is leased to the museum for $1 a year. YESCO continued using its storage lot into 2001, when the company began transferring signs to the Neon Museum's lot, known as the Neon Boneyard. It was open to the public by appointment only, starting later in 2001. By the following year, the site had 75 signs. As of 2003, the museum had expanded south to the adjacent land, where a second boneyard took shape. The collection grew to more than 200 signs as of 2006, with 50 coming from YESCO's storage site. The Neon Museum was popular for photo shoots but otherwise was largely unknown among the general public, averaging 1,800 tour-goers each year as of 2007.


La Concha project and public opening

The Doumani family, owners of the
La Concha Motel The La Concha Motel was a motel that opened in 1961 and closed in 2004. It was designed by architect Paul Williams (architect), Paul Williams who was one of the first prominent African American architects in the United States and was also the ar ...
on the Strip, donated its unique shell-shaped lobby to the museum in 2005, while the rest of the motel was demolished for redevelopment. The museum intended to use the lobby as a visitor center. Although it cost nearly $3 million to move and restore the lobby, the plans to open a museum became concrete after the donation of the building, drawing a number of public and private grants and donations. In 2006, the lobby was cut into eight pieces and moved north along Las Vegas Boulevard to the museum site. In 2010, the Neon Museum built a small park with desert landscaping, benches, and kiosks providing information about the history of neon. Known as the Neon Boneyard Park, it is located on the property's northwest corner. The half-acre project cost $1.9 million, which included paving a portion of the land for a museum parking lot. On May 12, 2011, work began to convert the relocated La Concha lobby into a visitor center. Following its completion, the Neon Museum officially opened to the general public on October 27, 2012, eliminating the old appointment-only system. Prior to the opening, the museum had averaged 1,000 monthly visitors by appointment. The years-long effort to open the museum was estimated to have cost $6 million. It employed 29 people and had another 30 volunteers. Las Vegas mayor Carolyn Goodman was hopeful that the Neon Museum would help attract more visitors to downtown. The museum received 60,461 visitors during 2013, on par with projections. Approximately 80 percent of the visitors were non-residents. In 2016, the museum's staff outgrew the office space in the La Concha structure and relocated to the former Las Vegas City Hall building. The prior office space was removed to create a larger gift shop for the museum.


Expansion

Hundreds of the museum's neon artifacts are kept in off-site storage facilities due to space limitations. In 2017, the museum received a $425,000 grant from the city to help finance an expansion of its main boneyard, allowing for more signs to go on display. The project required the purchase and demolition of the vacant L.A. Street Market, located directly south of the La Concha visitor center. With only about 30 percent of its collection on display, the Neon Museum sought to expand further. In 2019, the city agreed to lease a shuttered cultural center nearby for an indoor neon gallery, while the parking lot would become a third boneyard for signs. The structure was in need of costly repairs, but planning and fundraising were delayed as a result of the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
, prompting the Neon Museum to pull out of the deal in 2022. As of 2023, the museum received 200,000 visitors annually, with 30,000 turned away that year as a result of sold-out tours. The museum announced in 2024 that it would eventually move to two larger, nearby locations within 18b The Las Vegas Arts District. At least one of the sites is anticipated to open by 2027, and the original site will remain operational until then. The project is expected to cost $45 million, and will include relocating the La Concha lobby to one of the new sites.


Museum overview

The Neon Museum is located at 770 North Las Vegas Boulevard, where it occupies a site. The museum includes the main Neon Boneyard and the original, smaller North Gallery boneyard. The museum offers guided and self-guided tours. Stories are associated with each sign and are told to visitors. Many of the museum's signs come from hotel-casinos throughout the
Las Vegas Valley The Las Vegas Valley is a major metropolitan area in the Southern Nevada, southern part of the U.S. state of Nevada, and the second largest in the Southwestern United States. The state's largest urban agglomeration, the Las Vegas Metropolitan St ...
, particularly those that are no longer in operation. Signage from hotel-casinos include the Stardust, the
Riviera () is an Italian word which means , ultimately derived from Latin , through Ligurian . It came to be applied as a proper name to the coast of Liguria (the Genoa region in northwestern Italy) in the form , then shortened in English. Riviera may a ...
, the
Flamingo Flamingos or flamingoes () are a type of wading bird in the family Phoenicopteridae, which is the only extant family in the order Phoenicopteriformes. There are four flamingo species distributed throughout the Americas (including the Caribbe ...
, the Tropicana, the
Moulin Rouge Moulin Rouge (, ; ) is a cabaret in Paris, on Boulevard de Clichy, at Place Blanche, the intersection of, and terminus of Rue Blanche. In 1889, the Moulin Rouge was co-founded by Charles Zidler and Joseph Oller, who also owned the Olympia (Par ...
, El Cortez,
New York-New York New York-New York Hotel and Casino is a casino hotel on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada, United States. It is owned by Vici Properties and operated by MGM Resorts International, and is designed to evoke New York City in its architectur ...
, the
Plaza A town square (or public square, urban square, city square or simply square), also called a plaza or piazza, is an open public space commonly found in the heart of a traditional town or city, and which is used for community gatherings. Rela ...
, the Debbie Reynolds Hotel, and the
Nevada Palace Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, the ...
. In addition to hotel and casino signage, the collection also includes those from other businesses in the local community, such as a
Hard Rock Cafe Hard Rock Cafe, Inc. is a chain of theme restaurant, theme bar-restaurants, memorabilia shops, casinos, hotels and museums founded in 1971 by Isaac Tigrett and Peter Morton in London. In 1979, the cafe began covering its walls with rock and roll ...
, the Peppermill restaurant, and Ugly Duckling Car Sales. The museum also houses fiberglass sculptures, including a giant skull from the Treasure Island Hotel and Casino. Rob McCoy, the Neon Museum's then-president and CEO, said in 2016, "When we first began, we would have to call and ask for someone to donate a sign. We no longer have to do that. When a building is ready to get shut down or be imploded, we're one of the first calls they make. They want us to have the signs." The Barbara Molasky Acquisition Fund was established in 2021, to purchase signs that are not being donated by the owners. As of 2023, the collection includes approximately 250 signs on display, dating to the 1930s. The oldest piece in the collection is a sign remnant from the Green Shack restaurant. Aside from vintage signs, the museum also has more-recent pieces. Private donors are sought to fund restoration of the signs, the cost of which can range from $10,000 to $100,000, and can take three to six months. Due to the cost, many signs in the boneyard are unrestored and do not light up on their own during night tours, instead illuminated by external lighting. Some signs are considered of high priority for restoration, typically due to their historic status or because they are in a state of rapid deterioration. As of 2023, the museum hosted 200 weddings each year.


Scenic Byway project

In 2009, a portion of Las Vegas Boulevard was named a
National Scenic Byway A National Scenic Byway is a road recognized by the United States Department of Transportation for one or more of six "intrinsic qualities": archeological, cultural, historic, natural, recreational, and scenic. The program was established by Co ...
. In conjunction with this, the museum added several vintage neon signs along the street, including one from the downtown casino
Binion's Horseshoe Binion's Gambling Hall & Hotel, formerly Binion's Horseshoe, is a casino on Fremont Street along the Fremont Street Experience pedestrian mall in Downtown Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. It is owned by TLC Casino Enterprises. The casino is n ...
. A neon slipper, from the demolished Silver Slipper casino on the Strip, was added to the
median The median of a set of numbers is the value separating the higher half from the lower half of a Sample (statistics), data sample, a statistical population, population, or a probability distribution. For a data set, it may be thought of as the “ ...
in front of the museum. The newly placed signs joined others already installed along Las Vegas Boulevard, including the Hacienda's Horse & Rider.


Shows and mural

In 2018, the museum debuted a 30-minute show by artist Craig Winslow titled ''Brilliant!''. It uses
projection mapping Projection mapping, similar to video mapping and spatial augmented reality, is a video projection, projection technique used to turn objects, often irregularly shaped, into display surfaces for video projection. The objects may be complex industr ...
to reanimate the unlit signs in the North Gallery, set to vintage and contemporary music. The show was upgraded in 2021. That year, artists Nanda Sharif-pour and Ali Fathollahi created a mural for the museum, titled ''Las Vegas Luminaries''. It is located in the North Gallery, marking the entrance to ''Brilliant!''. The mural features 11 people who played a role in the city's artistic history, including entertainers
Liberace Władziu Valentino Liberace (May 16, 1919 – February 4, 1987) was an American pianist, singer and actor. He was born in Wisconsin to parents of Italian and Polish Americans, Polish origin and enjoyed a career spanning four decades of concerts, ...
and
Sammy Davis Jr. Samuel George Davis Jr. (December 8, 1925 – May 16, 1990) was an American singer, actor, comedian, dancer, and musician. At age two, Davis began his career in Vaudeville with his father Sammy Davis Sr. and the Will Mastin Trio, which t ...
, as well as sign designer Betty Willis. '' Lost Vegas: Tim Burton'', an exhibit by film director
Tim Burton Timothy Walter Burton (born August 25, 1958) is an American filmmaker and producer. Known for popularizing Goth subculture, Goth culture in the American film industry, Burton is famous for his Gothic film, gothic horror and dark fantasy films. ...
, ran at the Neon Museum from October 2019 to February 2020. It featured more than 40 art pieces by Burton.


Gallery

The following images are from the museum's two boneyards, unless stated otherwise. File:Las Vegas (40106244924).jpg, Neon genie lamp from the original
Aladdin Aladdin ( ; , , ATU 561, 'Aladdin') is a Middle-Eastern folk tale. It is one of the best-known tales associated with '' One Thousand and One Nights'' (often known in English as ''The Arabian Nights''), despite not being part of the original ...
resort, seen on the grounds of the
Neonopolis Neonopolis is a shopping center in Downtown Las Vegas, Nevada. Located on Fremont Street at the corner of Las Vegas Boulevard, the complex features a mix of restaurants, entertainment venues, and shops. In keeping with the complex's name, it co ...
mall in 2012 File:Cultural corridor welcome signage 1 (5478213735).jpg, Sign from Binion's Horseshoe, marking the northern start of the Scenic Byway. File:Brilliance at Neon Museum 2019 1 - Sarah Stierch.webm, A video of ''Brilliant!'' (2019) File:Las Vegas (35809517973).jpg, Neon king statue from the Coin Castle casino File:The Flame sign, Neon Museum.jpg, Sign for the Flame restaurant, seen outside of the
Fremont Hotel and Casino The Fremont Hotel & Casino is located in downtown Las Vegas, Nevada. It is part of the Fremont Street Experience, named after American explorer and politician John C. Frémont. The casino is operated by the Boyd Gaming Corporation. History ...
in 2009 File:Golden Nugget historic casino sign in the Neon Boneyard, Las Vegas, Nevada LCCN2011630278.tif, Historic Golden Nugget sign File:Hard Rock Casino guitar sign - Neon Museum.jpg, Guitar sign from a local
Hard Rock Cafe Hard Rock Cafe, Inc. is a chain of theme restaurant, theme bar-restaurants, memorabilia shops, casinos, hotels and museums founded in 1971 by Isaac Tigrett and Peter Morton in London. In 1979, the cafe began covering its walls with rock and roll ...
File:Neon Boneyard (40061761165).jpg, La Concha neon signage File:Moulin Rouge sign Neon Museum.jpg,
Moulin Rouge Moulin Rouge (, ; ) is a cabaret in Paris, on Boulevard de Clichy, at Place Blanche, the intersection of, and terminus of Rue Blanche. In 1889, the Moulin Rouge was co-founded by Charles Zidler and Joseph Oller, who also owned the Olympia (Par ...
sign File:The Neon Museum (35559937912).jpg, Gift shop exterior featuring signs for the Riviera and Tropicana resorts File:Las Vegas (35809515223).jpg, 1990s sign from the
Sahara The Sahara (, ) is a desert spanning across North Africa. With an area of , it is the largest hot desert in the world and the list of deserts by area, third-largest desert overall, smaller only than the deserts of Antarctica and the northern Ar ...
resort File:Stardust sign.jpeg, 1960s sign from the Stardust resort File:The Neon Museum (35341914390).jpg, Fiberglass skull from
Treasure Island ''Treasure Island'' (originally titled ''The Sea Cook: A Story for Boys''Hammond, J. R. 1984. "Treasure Island." In ''A Robert Louis Stevenson Companion'', Palgrave Macmillan Literary Companions. London: Palgrave Macmillan. .) is an adventure a ...
File:Ugly Duckling Car Sales sign - Neon Museum.jpg, Ugly Duckling Car Sales


References


External links

* * {{authority control Museums in Las Vegas Downtown Las Vegas Art museums and galleries in Nevada Neon lighting Signage Art museums and galleries established in 1996 1996 establishments in the United States Mass media museums in the United States