My black and white photograph captures the beautiful vintage neon sign for the H. Frishman Dry Goods store in Port Gibson, Mississippi
I shot this beautiful vintage store sign in Port Gibson, Mississippi in summer of 2023. The store is long-gone now, but the sign persists in quite immaculate condition. The store was called H. Frishman Dry Goods, and the sign featured the logo for Red Goose Shoes.
The sign has been hanging on this spot since the 1930s, which is incredible considering the exceptional condition it’s in . . . not a single piece of glass tube is broken, and there’s barely any fading or rust. However, the sign must have undergone restoration, or at least repair, because this photograph shows the sign with some neon glass missing.
According to the book Mississippi Signs by Steven Manheim, H. Frishman Dry Goods was operated by a Jewish couple named Herman and Miriam Frishman Marx, who were part of a large Jewish population living in Port Gibson at the time. A beautiful historic synagogue still stands in the city. The Frishman’s son Henry took over operation of the store from his parents.
The Library of Congress includes at least three photographs of this sign dated from 1940, 1986, and 2016.
Red Goose Shoes began in 1869 in St. Louis, selling shoes to pioneers heading west. The brand was trademarked in 1906 and one source said it was bought by another shoe company and was discontinued before 1953, while another said it continued into the 1970s.
The sign was manufactured by Zeiser Brothers Sign Company in St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1890, Zeiser Brothers made neon signs and porcelain signs for a wide variety of companies including many shoe companies like Red Goose Shoes, but also Anheuser Busch and many other breweries.
Sources and Links
Breweriana Aficionado. “Zeiser Bros Sign Company.“
Library of Congress Blog. “If the Sign Fits.” August 9, 2023. Jan Grenci.
Library of Congress. Photograph. “Port Gibson, Mississippi.” Photo by Marion Post Wolcott, August 1940.
Mississippi Signs. Steven Manheim. Arcadia Publishing. Page 52.
Rogers West Park Ridge Historical Society. “Red Goose Shoes.”