On Kent Avenue is this well-preserved reminder that Williamsburg was once known for its industry and factories.
And the bonus faded ad: a GE logo!
Cleaners Sales & Equipment Corp was in Williamsburg at least into the 1990s. There’s an address for it in Orangeburg, New York now.
Frank Jump has a little more company background.
Faded ads that are preserved in full are treasures. But most of the old signage found around the city consists of just one or two legible words—maybe a name or a type of service.
Whose business was it? What did they sell or manufacture? Without more words as clues, we may never know.
On the side of a prewar building now known as the Amsterdam Court Hotel at 50th Street and Broadway is this faded ad for apartments. How many rooms? How much per month? I wish we knew.
This faded sign, as seen from Sixth Avenue in the 20s, appears to read “R. S. Stern.” If this is correct, I wonder what Mr. Stern’s company sold.
