Then and Now: Flatbush Ave Billboards

Not only does Flatbush have a ton of ghost signs, it even has a ghost...frame for signs? Not sure what you’d call this old rusty thing on Flatbush Ave near Church (a billboard holder??) but I love this 1940s photo of it in all its glory.

A 1940s view of the Flatbush Ave billboards, advertising Jantzen swimsuits, the Greater New York Fund, Ruppert Beer, and Pittsburgh Paints. An eagle-eyed commenter on Instagram noticed the Rainbow store here, part of the chain you’ll still find today. (Photo: NYC Municipal Archives)

A 2019 view of the rusty billboard holder across from Erasmus High School on Flatbush Ave. You can still see some of the original facade of the strip of shops underneath on what’s now Root & Bundle.

This photo from 1932 shows the billboards on the left just before the Dutch Reformed Church. (photo: Percy Loomis Sperr via the NYPL)