They’re everywhere – those friendly reminders showing us where to go, what rules to follow, and spreading helpful information. There’s even a song about signs, aptly named, ‘Signs” written and performed by Five Man Electrical Band and covered by rock group Tesla. While most signs are mundane and typically just plain boring, what about unique or handmade signs?
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| Camp signs like these shown in a Raymond neighborhood are a common sight throughout Lakes Region lakefront access roads and other private ways. PHOTO BY KENDRA RAYMOND |
Similar appearing signposts can be found on River Road in Windham and in downtown Harrison. The eye-catching Harrison sign leads passers-by to locales such as neighboring towns like Bridgton and Norway, the Deertrees Theater, the VFW hall, businesses, campgrounds, restaurants, and local summer camps. Evidently, the sign changes periodically and is kept up to date with new spots as well as destinations that may no longer be pertinent.
But how about those typical last name signs, usually located at the end of a camp road with a separate sign for each family residing in the area? This phenomenon does not seem to exist in typical year-round neighborhoods.
The Carving Company website says, “Your camp needs a personalized sign!” but why? Perhaps it is the opportunity to express your own creativity, choosing various fonts, images, and sizes to share your vibe with the world or at least your camp road. Or maybe, no one really knows why.
“It’s a contagious idea. We have a name sign at the end of the road because everyone else does it. The signs are part of camp culture – it’s how things have always been done,” said Raymond resident Neily Raymond. “Maybe the signs served a purpose years ago, but now they’re just for fun,” she said. “We just replaced our sign last year, so it should last quite a while.”
Raymond property owner Dennis Frappier is an Airbnb host and real estate investor.
“I see signs as an aid so family and guests can find their vacation destination,” he said while emphasizing that he has no additional insight into the camp signs culture.
At a different Raymond neighborhood with a large population of seasonal residents, another camp owner said that he believes old-fashioned camp signs to be from a bygone era. He has never had a name sign and doesn’t plan to, ever, saying that if he wants to be found, he will tell people where to go.
Maine Sign Company’s website has a post claiming that often signs are left to mass-production, and they believe artisan skills making signs by hand by craftsmen creates signs “the way they used to be.”
Going a step further is a more personalized family crest sign. Raymond residents Tom and Ann Ewig proudly display their family crest on a signpost in front of their Raymond home and even on a vehicle.
“Ann and I constructed the sign incorporating the Ewig family crest with two oak leaves with the Sheldrake family crest, the drake,” said Tom Ewig.
He explained that the sheldrake crest was an old crest from the Franklin side of the family, which is his wife’s maiden name. The combined crest holds a lot of significance for the Ewigs.
“We have used this combined crest for over 40 years symbolizing our union. We designed the crest together,” he said.
He emphasized that they have been married for 56 years, much longer than the development of their combined crest.
Alex Gaskarth’s quote says, “Our street corners keep secrets, and our road signs only suggest, never deciding for us, never knowing if the destination to which they lead, is where we truly belong. Life’s greatest tragedy is not that it will someday end, but that most of us just live to follow directions, and many times we end up totally lost.” Well, maybe that’s a bit too deep for our purposes here, but it is food for thought.
To learn more about the iconic Maine World Traveler Signpost, visit: https://visitmaine.com>arts-culture <
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