Porcelain Signs

 How many have ever seen the old porcelain trail signs with the white background and green lettering?   My first sighting of one was in the Marble Mountain Wilderness in the 1970's.   Don't remember what it said, but remember it being on a tree along an abandoned trail.   Do remember one or two on the Hardesty Mountain trail system along the north boundary of the Cottage Grove District of the Umpqua National Forest.   Seems they had been there so long the trees were growing over them.

These signs date back to the 1930's and not sure when they were replaced with wooden signs.    Over the years many of the wooden signs have been damaged by animals, used as target practice or removed by people thinking they would look better as a mantel piece.   Most National Forests used to have a sign shop at their main shop and warehouse facilities located in the community where the Forest Supervisor's office was.   Not sure if that is still the case.   With all the wildfires most the wooden signs probably are gone, but the old metal porcelain signs could be buried in the ash for future generations to discover and wonder what prehistoric civilization used these and what happened to those places named on the signs?