History of Signs: How Signs Tell America’s Story OOL (Zoom)
Osher Online - Summer | Available (Membership Required)
Explore 100 years of American history through objects often taken for granted in everyday life: signs. Led by the American Sign Museum (ASM) staff, this course introduces the Museum’s origins and features a conversation with ASM’s founder about why signs matter. We will examine how signs have evolved due to trends in commerce and technology. We will also explore case studies of three major food companies who used signage to shape their brands. In the final session, we will take a virtual visit to ASM’s neon shop to see how a neon sign is made.
Summer 2026 History of Signs: How Signs Tell America’s Story: On Vimeo
Note: Registration for the Summer Osher National Online courses will close on Sunday, June 21, 2026.
Osher Online™ courses are not recorded.
Erin Holland
The American Sign Museum (Cincinnati, Ohio) covers more than 100 years of American sign history and displays more than 800 signs and artifacts, making it the most comprehensive museum of its kind. With a mission to educate the community about the history of the sign industry and its significant contribution to commerce and the American landscape, the Museum is organized to preserve, archive and display a historical collection of signs in their many types and forms.