French engineer Georges Claude invented the first neon sign in 1910 by passing electricity through neon in a glass tube, creating a bright red-orange glow. In Montana, the first producer of neon signs was The Electric Products Corporation (EPCON), founded in Great Falls in 1928. Shortly after, neon signs began to appear around the state, with one of the most prominent examples dating to 1929 in Bozeman.

For many years, Bill Todd was Bozeman’s neon sign maker. Todd owned and operated Rainbow Signs in Bozeman until he retired in 2005. Ole Nelson’s Media Station Design Works Inc. is Bozeman’s premier neon sign designer. Along with neon bender John Nyman in Billings, they have recreated and refurbished many of the city’s original neon signs, as well as created new ones.

Signs of Montana also works to restore and maintain many of Bozeman's neon signs. Restored signs include The Eagles, Schnees Sporting Goods, Rocking R Bar (2024), and The Sapphire Motel. Maintenance and all the service work for the Crystal neon signs as well as for the Baxter Hotel, have been done by SOM over the last few years. 

A walk from East to West Main Street will allow you to see every sign on this list, with one quick detour onto N 7th Avenue.

Baxter Hotel (1929)
105 W Main St
The original 32-foot-high neon sign was erected in 1929 on the roof of the hotel. The sign’s 400 feet of neon tubing proudly announce the Baxter name, its letters large enough to be seen for miles, but not likely as far as the Butte hill, as the sign maker claimed. The great neon sign went dark sometime in the 60s or 70s. It was fully restored by Ole Nelson and Darren Dust in 2013, and relit on January 10th that year.


Rialto Theatre (1924)
10 W Main St
Originally built in 1908 as a two-story storefront and converted into a movie theater in 1924, the Rialto reopened on January 17, 2018 as a reinvented venue and “hub for entertainment and culture.” Ole Nelson and John Nyman worked together to recreate the Rialto signs from old photographs.


Crystal Bar (1933)
123 E Main St
Listed in the 1935-36 city directory as Arthur Nash’s beer parlor, the Crystal is widely recognized as one of Montana’s oldest bars. The establishment was first called The Crystal in the 1940 directory, and currently has several neon signs. One simple red neon sign with the name of the bar and Bozeman, Montana hangs on the front of the building, while another, more colorful neon sign hangs from the ceiling in the middle of the bar. Three neon signs currently hang in the front windows along the sidewalk.

Eagles Aerie #326 (1940s)
316 E Main St
The Bozeman Eagles Club has been in its current location at 316 East Main Street since 1905, in a building that originally served as a ‘car barn’ for an extensive streetcar and trolley system. Prominent Bozeman architect Fred Willson remodeled the storefront in 1945, replacing the trolley barn doors with the present brick and ornamental cinder block, leaving the fine 1901 brickwork intact. The neon sign with iconic Eagle hanging over the front door, now a local landmark, was installed in the 1940s.

Schnee’s Sporting Goods (1946)
35 E Main St
This iconic neon sign with the words “Sporting Goods” is a historic another recognizable landmark in downtown Bozeman; it dates back to 1946, when Powder Horn Outfitters was founded. Schnee’s acquired The Powder Horn in 2006 and merged the two businesses in 2012. The sign, topped with a neon rifle and blazing red flashing circles, continues to identify the business, a premier retailer specializing in their own brand of footwear and outdoor clothing.

Rocking R Bar (1947)
211 E Main St
The Rocking R Bar opened in 1947 in the Ellis, Davis, & Sperling Building on East Main Street in downtown Bozeman. On March 5, 2009, a gas explosion severely damaged the building which housed the Rocking R, displacing the neon sign several hundred feet from the building. Somehow, the sign survived the blast and in July 2011, the F&H Building was opened as the new home of the Rocking R, sporting the refurbished neon sign.

The Sapphire Motel (1955)
310 N 7th Ave
Initially called the Glen Motel (1940), Bozeman’s motor court motel has gone through a handful of iterations since the 1950s. The original sign was from the Travelier Motel (1950s); it then welcomed guests to the Stardust Motel (1972). For the longest time, the sign advertised the Royal 7 Motel (1985) before the name was changed to The Sapphire in 2021. The sign currently welcomes travelers to Bozeman, Montana The Last Best Place.


Vargo’s Jazz City & Books (1957)
6 W Main St
Vargo’s is one of Main Street’s most unique stores, delighting book lovers and jazz enthusiasts for decades. Its small, bright neon sign hangs inside the front window of the store as an invitation to the creative world inside. The three lines of text in the sign are each a different color: green, blue, and red.

The Lewis & Clark Motel (1976)
824 W Main St
The iconic Lewis & Clark Motel marquee neon sign is original to the premises, which has been operating as an independently owned boutique motel since 1976. The huge sign welcomes visitors to Bozeman, as well as to the classic drive-up style motel, which provides many luxury hotel amenities, including afternoon tea, a 60-foot pool, hot tub, eucalyptus steam room, infrared dry saunas, and a fitness room.


Ted’s Montana Grill (2008)
105 W Main St
Ted Turner’s Montana Grill opened its doors on Main Street, Bozeman in 2008, displaying a double sided sign with a bison emblazoned with yellow and red neon on the corner of the Baxter Hotel building and another along Willson Ave, created and hung by Signs of Montana. The restaurant chain was founded by Turner in 2002 in Columbus, OH. The chain uses ingredients and hospitality that define the Great American West while also preserving and building the bison herds in America, one of which is just west of Bozeman on the way to Big Sky.

Of course, there are more neon signs in Bozeman not listed here, many of which have been hung since 2000, just waiting for you to discover. Enjoy the hunt.