Northstar Blankets/Gold Medal Flour

Peter: 5th Apr 2007 - 19:20 GMT

wow, that second one is so luminescent... i love it...

Frank S. Besner: 6th Apr 2007 - 13:42 GMT

WOW! that's identical to the Five Star Flour sign up in Pointe-Saint-Charles in Mtl.
I wonder if Gold Medal Flour might not be the American equavent for Five Star...
Maybe these signs were just a fad with the flour producing companies of that era...

Frank S. Besner: 6th Apr 2007 - 13:45 GMT

Gah! That's five ROSES. Power of suggestion, people.
does yours blink too?

Tyfoid Kid: 6th Apr 2007 - 15:10 GMT

Gold Medal Flour has been around since the 1880's but this building and it's sign is not that old. Probably from the 40's or 50's.

CE: 6th Apr 2007 - 19:48 GMT

I was thinking the same thing. I live right by the Five Roses sign. It's too bad that it's in such bad shape right now.

anon (69-24-3-95.dial.ncia.net): 24th May 2007 - 21:33 GMT

Building was built in 1864 by the Northstar Woolen Mill.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Star_Woolen_Mill

Jason: 3rd Jun 2007 - 19:46 GMT

The gold medal sign is on top of the former Washburn-Crosby elevator #1. The elevator was built in 1906, the second or third concrete grain elevator in the world. Each sign was originally lit by 670 - 15 watt light bulbs. Each letter is eight feet tall. The signs were converted to blinking neon in 1998 as part of the construction of Mill City Museum, which owns the elevator.