Leverett & Frye, Notting Hill

The building that stretches along the western side of Powis Mews in Notting Hill was once Leverett & Frye's warehouse and ghost signs for the company can still be seen at both ends.

Since it barely sees the sun, the ghost sign as the northern end of the mews is better preserved. Two overlapping ghost signs at least, for the same company, feature on this wall.

The most recent sign reads:Leverett & Frye
Limited
Boundary Warehouse
Bottling Stores
Packing Warehouse
& Offices Only a few words from the older sign can still be read:... ...
... ...
Depositories
Removing ...
In Lewes [?]
Goods Packed & Forwarded
By Road or Water
Removals by Motor
...
& 8 Elgin Crescent
... ...s

The name Boundary Warehouse certainly came from the proximity of the building to the boundary between Notting Hill, in Kensington, and Bayswater, in Westminster.

The wall as the southern end of the former depository was painted on three occasions.

Even what was written there has faded quite a bit, it is still possible to decipher a fair part of those signs but not necessarily to reconstitute each one of them.

Below is what I managed to read, irrespective of the chronological order:

Leverett & Frye
Depositories
Boundary Warehouse
Removing & Storing
A... ...
Goods Packed & Forwarded by Road or Water
Bottling Stores
Removals by Motor
Offices For ...
Packing Warehouse
... 8 Elgin Crescent, Notting Hill
1835 Phone Park ..07

Park, named after Hyde Park, was the telephone exchange for Bayswater and Notting Hill.

Location: Powis Mews

Vittel, Montlieu-la-Garde

Not far from yesterday's ghost signs for beer and vermouth is another one for a completely different drink, more suitable for drivers: Vittel. It looks as if other products were advertised on this wall at some point but the only one I could identify is for this brand of mineral water from the namesake spa town in the Vosges region, in northeastern France.

Originally the Vittel sign would certainly have included the mentions "Grande source" (the name of Vittel's main spring) above and "La santé en bouteille" ("Health in a bottle") below, both in white letters on a blue background. These would have contrasted with the red letters of "Vittel" on a white background.

Location: former RN10, Montlieu-la-Garde, Charente-Maritime

Kronenbourg and Vermouth Noilly Prat, Montlieu-la-Garde

The grange on which yesterday's ghost sign can be seen has more to offer than just lubricants. Indeed the whole front of the building facing the former route of the Nationale 10 was used for advertising.

There might have been other products or services advertised on this wall but nowadays it is the names of two alcoholic drinks that stand out.

On the left is a ghost sign for Kronenbourg. Some information about this beer was posted earlier: see Kronenbourg, Saint-André-de-Cubzac.

And on the right is a better-preserved sign for the Noilly Prat. To find out more about this particular brand of vermouth, check this earlier post: Vermouth Noilly Prat, Saint-André-de-Cubzac

Part of another advert can be seen on the left of the picture below but I haven't managed to identify it.

Location: former RN10, Montlieu-la-Garde, Charente-Maritime

Huile Renault, Montlieu-la-Garde

This is undoubtedly one of the most colourful signs I've ever come across. Shame the upper part is hidden by a modern sign!

Actually there are two versions of the advert for Renault's motor oil on this wall.

The Société Anonyme des Huiles Renault was founded in 1911 by car manufacturer Louis Renault. It offered a wide range of lubricants not only for motor vehicles but also for boats and planes.

This is one of many ghost signs that can still be seen along the former Route Nationale 10 (N10), the trunk road that ran from Paris to Hendaye on the Spanish border, via Bordeaux. However in order to see them, one has to leave the many by-passes and newer dual carriageway sections of the road and follow the old route through the centre of villages.

Location: former RN10, Montlieu-la-Garde, Charente-Maritime

Dairy & Butter, Kingston

The only piece of information about the property this ghost sign is painted on I could find dates from 1913, when, according to Kelly's Directory of Surrey, it was occupied by grocer William Packham. Could he have been the retailer behind this ghost sign?

Dairy
New Milk [?]
Eggs
Cream
Butter

Location: Elm Road

King, corn flour and seed merchant, Kingston

Corn Flour		... King		& Seed Merchant
Hay, Strawchaff, Meals, Etc.

Location: Canbury Avenue

C. W. Lindsay, Montreal

I spotted this ghost sign for C. W. Lindsay from the windows of our room on the 22nd floor of the Sheraton.

C. W. Lindsay & Co was a piano, phonograph, and sheet music retailer. The company was founded by Charles William Lindsay in 1877.

C. W. Lindsay Co. Limited
Heintzman & Co. Pianos
Home Furnishings

In 1883 Lindsay became the agent for piano manufacturer Heintzman & Co from Toronto. This explains why the name of that firm was painted at the back of the seven-storey building built for C. W. Lindsay & Co. on Rue Sainte-Catherine Ouest shortly after it became a limited company in 1902. The mention 'Home furnishings' may have been painted later, possible after C. W. Lindsay & Co moved out of the building.

Two different ghost signs with the company's name can be seen from Rue Sainte-Catherine Ouest.

C. W. Lindsay

The original one read "C. W. Lindsay" (there may have been more). The extra large letters covered the whole side of the building. However it became obscured when new skyscrapers were erected and the company had a smaller but much more visible sign painted in the upper right corner of the wall.

C. W. Lindsay Limited
Pianos
Player Pianos - Phonographs

Lindsay's initials, part of the original sign, can be seen from Square Dorchester.

More information about C. W. Lindsay & Co can be found here.

Location: Rue Sainte-Catherine Ouest, Montréal

Medallion Woodworks, Montreal

The first of many ghost signs spotted during a weekend in Montréal.

		Medallion
Door & Sash		MW Since 1883		Moldings & Carvings
		Woodworks

Location: alleyway linking Rue Metcalfe and Rue Mansfield, Montréal

About to resume

After a rather long interruption, posting on this blog will now resume. However, because of other commitments, I won't necessarily have time to research the story behind some of the ghost signs. I may in the future, but from now on, it will be essentially photos and the texts of the signs.