Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Lineman's Club

This cool, old sign doesn't look like it works anymore.  Who knew that telephone linemen had their own bar?  Notice the fake transformers insulators at the top of the "pole."  The club is long gone and is now a Laotian grocery store.
Posted by Oakland Daily Photo at 8:30 PM
Labels: , ,

18 comments:

  1. JamesFebruary 23, 2010 at 9:02 PM

    That is one of the coolest old signs that I've seen in a very long time. This reminds me of an old Edward G Robinson movie. I think it was called the Linemen. I remember an old bar that I think used to be in Oakland. It was probably from the 40's but it was still around in the 80's. It was called "The Office". I had a good laugh picturing a wife asking her husband where he's been all night and the drunk husband sayng he was "at the office", hickup. :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. TaniaFebruary 24, 2010 at 12:02 AM

    Cool sign! Thanks for your nice comments on my blog.
    I wish you a blessed day:-)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Louis la VacheFebruary 24, 2010 at 6:17 AM

    Great sign! Too bad it hasn't been restored!
    Is this on E.14th Street (ahem) International Boulevard?

    ReplyDelete
  4. UnknownFebruary 24, 2010 at 7:43 AM

    One of my favorite Oakland signs.

    @LLV - Yep, it's on E.14th. There's no bar there anymore, but a small grocery, so it's unlikely to be restored.

    ReplyDelete
  5. AnonymousFebruary 24, 2010 at 11:24 AM

    that's a really cool sign, it's a shame that it doesn't light at night

    ReplyDelete
  6. Three Rivers, MichiganFebruary 25, 2010 at 12:34 PM

    Outstanding catch! Where is it? I love the insulator decoration.
    Three Rivers Daily Photo

    ReplyDelete
  7. Oakland Daily PhotoFebruary 25, 2010 at 7:42 PM

    Chris and «Louis»: This sign is on International near 13th St. I hope to drive by one evening just to make sure it's not working. Gene's website has tons of local neon signs.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Oakland Daily PhotoMarch 5, 2010 at 6:14 PM

    Oops. Make that 13th Avenue.

    ReplyDelete
  9. KimMarch 20, 2010 at 3:28 PM

    That one is a real beaut! I bet that is a custom sign and not another like it in the country. What a find! Beautiful.

    ReplyDelete
  10. AnonymousApril 6, 2010 at 3:27 PM

    That was an old Hells Angels hangout, back when it was still a bar.

    ReplyDelete
  11. AnonymousJuly 8, 2010 at 5:37 PM

    This was my grandfather's bar. He owned it for 30 years. It was sold after his passing in 1985. I spent the first years of my life in and out of that bar...

    So, thanks for posting. The fact that the sign is still there is so cool to me. My mom still has glassware and signage from inside the bar. Ah, memories...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. IBEW1245InfoFebruary 22, 2013 at 12:05 PM

      Hello. The photo above has come to the attention of the manager of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local Union 1245, an organization in Vacaville that represents thousands of high-voltage line workers in California and Nevada. He would welcome learning more about the business that the sign represented. If you would like to share more, he would welcome receiving an e-mail at:
      Info@IBEW1245.com
      Thanks.

      Delete
    2. late4dinnerJune 25, 2013 at 7:38 PM

      IBEW1245Info--
      I sure hope the IBEW were able to get their hands on this sign and give it a good home because I just noticed about a week ago that it was no longer there. If this sign is now in the possession of the IBEW keep the Oakland Daily Photo Blog posted on the restoration or whatever is planned for it. I hope it wasn't just removed by the building owner and dumped in a land-fill.

      I had driven by this sign a couple times a week for several years always thinking about stopping and taking a photo of it but never having the time--I always looked for it as I drove down International and recently realized it wasn't there--had to turn around and drive by several times before I had to accept that such a great landmark of the past had disappeared.

      I always figured that the building owner probably didn't care about the sign and I had a fantasy of offering to take it off the building and off his hands at no cost to him. What would I do with it? Open a bar called the Lineman's Club, what else?

      I just got on-line hoping to find a photo of it which is what brought me to this blog--great photo (thanks), great site and I joined immediately. Nice that people who have a connection to the old bar have posted here.

      This sign was what I call 'dead neon' -- I never saw it lit up at night-- the cracked tubes made that obvious.
      .

      Delete
    3. Oakland Daily PhotoJune 25, 2013 at 7:55 PM

      L4D,
      You'll be happy to know that the Vacaville IBEW bought the sign. I think they have plans to restore it. If you have any history of this club to share with them, they'd love to hear from you. Their email is in their above post. Thanks for visiting.
      ODP

      Delete
  12. AnonymousFebruary 24, 2011 at 3:32 PM

    This was one of the great working class bars that used to be in Oakland. It was my father's main hang out and I drank there a little too. They cashed payroll checks and did a great business. Its customers reflected Oakland's diversity. It was opened after ww2 by a couple of ex-g.i.'s who I remember fondly.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Oakland Daily PhotoJune 25, 2013 at 7:54 PM

    This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  14. newtonpoSeptember 12, 2013 at 11:26 PM

    It was one of my hangouts in the seventies,when it was a real jumpin' working guys bar.We cashed our checks there,friday afternoon,and usually closed the place two-three nights a week.drank a lot of beer and Tuaca.(You wont be able to walka' if you drink too much Tuaca),in this great old bar.Owners used to have a bus pick us up sunday mornings and go too the
    Raider games.In those days,it was a multi-racial bar,and a warm place for regular folks to feel at home,play pool,hang out.WArm memories during a rough time in my life.

    ReplyDelete
  15. UnknownJune 4, 2019 at 1:38 AM

    My grandparents would go Dancing when they had a band playing and bring home the winning check for the best dancers.

    ReplyDelete

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)