In this post we will recall the origins of outdoor advertising through one of the pioneers in exterior signage as was The RC Maxwell Company. His magnificent collection consisting of more than 35,000 professional photographs of billboards taken since 1917 to the 90's was donated in 1996 to University Duke by David C. Maxwell. A small portion of these photographs we can watch the digital library Emergence of Advertising in America of Duke University but enough to allow us to enjoy and observe the excellent outdoor advertising that The RC Maxwell developed in rural areas, cars, people, shops, promenades and beaches, located in various cities of the American East Coast, New Jersey, Philadelphia, Atlantic City, etc..
Industry advertising began to acquire a modern structure in the U.S. mid-nineteenth century, until then was little publicity posters to be pasted into any wall or space. Years later, improvements in printing technology made it possible to print larger sheets that could be assembled into multiple pieces to create many more great posters. Circuses and theaters were the first to use this new form of advertising but soon these posters with wood supports were mounted along the rail lines. In the 1870 revolution in color lithography allowed these posters could be printed in bright colors while improving design. The industry as a whole in 1872 was the need to organize seeking standardization of structures for mounting posters. In 1900 agreement was reached to design a structure that could contain a variable number of sheets for each poster 42 "x 28" size. This standardization was an important step for the acceptance of valid signs for advertising and stop the movements that emerged against the placement of posters in public.
Bromine Cartel de Sales for headache in 1918 
1921 Newark The RC Maxwell Company was founded in 1894 in Trenton (New Jersey) by the then 21-year old painter Robert Chester Maxwell. Until its sale in 2000 was the company's oldest outdoor advertising existed.
In the nineteenth century the railroad was the main means of transport, Maxwell started his business structures built on wooden boards, which placed large billboards to be seen by travelers. With the advent of the automobile business was expanded with billboards along the growing network of roads and highways where for many years has been informing motorists to become part of American culture.
Advertising rail 1925 
Advertising JE Stevenson in 1921 
Lincol near the tunnel in 1922 Pennsylvania 
With the development of the incandescent bulb after the First World War, the company began creating in 1917 advertising posters on electricity. Maxwell saw great potential in these spectacular posters and mounted in Atlantic City a plant to manufacture electric billboards. 
Altantic City 1920 
1920 Boardwalk Atlantic City 
Atlantic City 1921 Panoramic 
are numerous signs that were placed in Atlantic City but the creations of this subsidiary giant thermometer stands 50 feet tall to Colgate, located in a building on the Boardwalk and Atlantic City boardwalk in 1922, where he was listed as the world's largest thermometer. 
Colgate Thermometer Atlatic City 1920 
Atlantic City Carnival 1924 
Atlantic City Boardwalk in 1924 
The built in 1926 for Chesterfield cigarettes firm located in Steeplechase Pier between Pennsylvania Avenue and the boardwalk of Atlantic City, was the largest, beautiful and spectacular electric signs in the world. It was composed of 26,000 light bulbs for 75 seconds duration of a cycle and in 27 stages were going on to finish in a blaze of gold and white before shutting down completely and start again.
Camel ad Building in Atlantic City 1924 
ad Lucky Strike Building in Atlantic City 1925 
Atlantic City 1925 Boardwalk collection of photographs of RC Maxwell Company are important not only for its advertising content but because it also shows urban and rural landscapes from a time far enough to constitute the them, a valuable document of American culture of the early twentieth century.
Atlantic City 1925 Boardwalk All photographs displayed in this post belong to the Duke University and can be found on this link to a non-commercial use of them.
http://library.duke.edu/digitalcollections/eaa/browse/maxwell/
are part of the digital library at Duke University: Emergence of Advertising in America
http:// library.duke.edu / digitalcollections / eaa /
recommend to click on the pictures to enlarge.
