Meadow Gold. Mayo Hotel. Circle Cinema. The Brook.
These iconic neon signs light up Tulsa’s night sky, and they share a common origin story. They were all created by the talents at Claude Neon Federal Signs, a Tulsa business celebrating its 100th anniversary this year alongside Route 66.
Joe Kesterson, senior designer at CNF Signs, said he believes the company’s history is cosmically intertwined with Route 66.
“The route is mostly known for neon, and I think that coincided with when Georges Claude, the man that invented neon, started licensing to the United States,” Kesterson said.
With Route 66 and CNF Signs both opening in 1926, Kesterson said neon exploded in popularity. The company has been servicing businesses along the Mother Road ever since.
“I think that’s kind of how that all came to be on the same wavelength for 100 years,” Kesterson said. “I think that brought along the mystique of Route 66 having all that glow. That’s what people remember from their childhood.”
When Claude began to sell patents and manufacturing rights for neon tubing under the name Claude Neon, Federal Sign & Signal Company of Chicago was one of his first buyers, Kesterson said. That company began selling franchises to sign companies around the country.
“That’s kind of how we got our name: Claude Neon Federal Signs. They kind of combined the two, and so that’s kind of when neon really took off here,” Kesterson said. “And then, that became the symbol of Route 66 at the same time.”
Initially, CNF Signs operated a sales hub in Tulsa. The company began manufacturing signs in the city during the 1950s. Today, about 70 years later, Kesterson said CNF Signs employs around 50 people between its front office and warehouse — including several who have been around the business for nearly their entire lives. Kesterson himself joined the company after graduating college.
“We have many employees who started here when they were in high school, and they are retiring in the next few years,” Kesterson said. “They’ve been here their entire lives.”
To that end, Kesterson said CNF Signs is struggling to bring young people into the business.
“It’s not easy work, it’s fun work, but it’s hard to get that word out there to people that this can be a career,” Kesterson said. “People just don’t think of it as that.”
Glowing up ahead of the centennial celebration
While the neon business slowed down in the ‘80s and ‘90s with the emergence of LED lights, the centennial celebrations of the Mother Road have turned back the clock. Businesses are seeking out neon again, Kesterson said.
With the May 30 Route 66 Capitol Cruise fast approaching, Kesterson said CNF Signs is working against the clock.
“We’re working with the city on several projects, and basically just going around trying to make sure everybody’s signs are working, fixed and all the neon is good,” Kesterson said.
Among the company’s many ongoing projects, CNF Signs is putting together welcome gateways on the east and west sides of the city’s portion of Route 66, Kesterson said. Additionally, the company is working on the Blue Whale of Catoosa’s new visitor center ahead of the centennial.
Kesterson said Tulsans’ passion for their city and upholding their culture has allowed CNF Signs to succeed for a century — and hopefully many more years to come.
“There’s a culture of history in Tulsa. They embrace it,” Kesterson said. “With our art deco history and all of these old buildings, that’s kind of nice.”
Read more about Tulsa’s 100 years of Route 66 and the centennial celebrations to come.
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