Hidden down alleyways, on street corners or on the bricks above the cityscape, Cincinnati's fading advertisements hide in plain sight. These ghost signs still tout their wares and services, remnants of a bygone era. Each sign has a vivid story behind it unique to its era, product and craftsmanship. "Wall dogs" like sign artist Gus Holthaus left their marks on the city. A sign for the Beehive, the club and restaurant at the top of the arena, reminds residents of Cincinnati's pro hockey team, the Stingers. Not many can remember "the Other Place," but a hand-painted advertisement still adorns a city wall. Join author and photographer Ronny Salerno for a tour of Cincinnati's vanishing signs and their intriguing history.

Before the billboard, radio or television commercial, there was the painted ad. Today, these aging ads capture the imagination, harkening back to a bygone era. Vanishing paint on brick walls speaks to a time when commerce was much simpler and much more direct. Few cities in America have produced as many intriguing fading ads as St. Louis. Fewer still are home to such an expert on the subject as author Wm. Stage. For decades, Stage has studied and researched the lost art form of the painted ad, carefully tracking the history of this hands-on approach to advertising from its lustrous heyday to its disappearing present. Join Stage on a tour through St. Louis's fading ads hidden in plain sight.

Across Detroit, fleeting symbols of the past hide in plain sight, behind weeds and under veneers of paint. Demolishing a vacant building among empty storefronts on the west side uncovered the telltale gold and green of a Vernors Ginger Ale sign, preserved almost as vibrantly as the artist intended. In faded red, white and blue, Mac-O-Lac Paint makes an expired pitch to passersby on Gratiot near Eastern Market. On the east side, Mohawk Rock and Rye still declares itself the "World's Finest " Carhartt, Stroh's and Faygo appear in odd, deserted places. Detroit Free Press journalist Robert Allen sifts through these advertising fossils, exposing the gripping stories connected to the Motor City's historic rises, falls and eccentricities.

The fading advertisements on the walls of Birmingham's buildings paint an illuminating picture of the men and women who built an industrial boomtown in the first half of the twentieth century. Advertising expert, artist and writer Charles Buchanan unravels the mysteries behind Birmingham's ghost signs to reveal glimpses of the past now hidden in plain sight. Featuring stunning color photography by Birmingham native Jonathan Purvis.

"Like the Cheshire Cat, much of Chicago's history fades away while perched in plain sight. For more than a century, the brick walls of the city served as a ready canvas for advertisements that married artistic experimentation and commercial endeavor. Signs for horseshoers and Hamlin's Wizard Oil were painted by "wall dogs" in places where they would outlast the way of life they represented. Since author Joseph Marlin began documenting the city's advertisements more than thirty years ago, many of them have completely vanished beneath the onslaught of blizzard and bulldozer. From national brands to mom-and-pop shops, his collection offers the last glimpse of a bygone era"--Back cover.

On brick buildings throughout Minneapolis and St. Paul, overlooked, fleeting symbols chronicle the cities' past. Champion, John Deere, and International Harvester still tout their agricultural equipment, and Gold Medal and Pillsbury Flour remind everyone where these now global companies began. Weathered proclamations from Grain Belt, Jacob Schmidt, and Gluek's Beer offer a glimpse into early local brewing. Ads from Schmitt Music and Dahl Violin Shop recall a thriving art scene. Local hardware stores like Welna Ace Hardware and grocery stores like J.H. Allen & Co Grocers and Schoen's Home Grocery hawk long-gone wares through elegant painted announcements. Join photographer and author Jay Grammond for a fascinating journey through Twin Cities history.

New York City is eternally evolving. From its iconic skyline to its side alleys, the new is perpetually being built on the debris of the past. But a movement to preserve the citys vanishing landscapes has emerged. For nearly twenty years, Frank Jump has been documenting the fading ads that are visible, but less often seen, all over New York. Disappearing from the sides of buildings or hidden by new construction, these signs are remnants of lost eras of New Yorks life. They weave together the citys unique history, culture, environment and society and tell the stories of the businesses, places and people whose lives transpired among them the story of New York itself. This photo-documentary is also a study of time and space, of mortality and living, as Jumps campaign to capture the ads mirrors his own struggle with HIV. Experience the ads shot with vintage Kodachrome film and the meaning they carry through acclaimed photographer and urban documentarian Frank Jumps lens.