- Clark Byers
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Clark Byers (ca. 1915 – 19 February 2004) was an American sign maker. He is famous for painting over 900 barns in 19 states with the slogan "See Rock City".[1]
Byers, of Trenton, Georgia, started painting advertising on barns in the American South for the Rock City attraction atop Lookout Mountain, Tennessee. Rock City's owners offered barn owners a free paint job and Rock City souvenirs in exchange for allowing Byers to placing a marketing message on their barns.
Because the barns came in various shapes and sizes, each sign was different, but all featured white lettering on a black background, executed in freehand. The number of words and their arrangement varied, based on the size and shape of the barn. On large barns, Byers might paint "See 7 States from ROCK CITY atop Lookout Mt. near Chatanooga, Tenn." and on small barns, just "See Beautiful ROCK CITY today."
Byers' efforts led to Rock City and Lookout Mountain becoming a national tourist destination.
References
- ^ Tucker, Gregory (September 7, 2009). "Rock City painter left mark on South". The Tennessean. http://www.tennessean.com/article/20090907/NEWS01/909070326. Retrieved September 9, 2009.[dead link]
Adapted from the article Clark Byers, from Wikinfo, licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.
Categories:- 1915 births
- 2004 deaths
- American artists
- American artist stubs
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