By signcraft
Posted on Monday, October 28th, 2024
One of the most influential sign companies in Chicago-style sign design was Seelander and Swanson. Created by a partnership of J. Marshall Seelander Sr. and Les Swanson in 1932, the shop was in operation for decades. Along the way, it was a hotbed of creative sign painters and designers, many of whom went on to create sign companies of their own.
Recently SignCraft heard from John Marshall Seelander III, J. Marshall’s grandson. While researching his family’s history, John unearthed some very interesting photos of Seelander and Swanson work, along with other memorabilia from the shop’s history, which he shared with us.
J. Marshall as a young signpainter
Les and Marshall were already experienced, creative journeymen sign painters when they opened Seelander and Swanson in the heart of the Great Depression. Marshall was a graduate of the Art Institute of Chicago and had roots in sign painting.
J. Marshal and Les Swanson with Chicago’s Navy Pier in the background
Thanks to their skills and approach to running the business, the company grew rapidly. By the time Marshall died in 1948, they had 27 employees and were based in a large brick building on S. Ashland Ave. that the company owned.
Chicago sign artist Bob Behounek recalls seeing that building as a young apprentice.
“I used to drive by the Seelander and Swanson shop,” says Bob, “on my way to work as an apprentice sign painter. I worked under Wally Zimmer who talked a lot about the history of Chicago sign painting. He told me how many of the sign painters at Seelander and Swanson had also worked at Beverly Sign Co., which was the premier sign company in Chicago in the ’50s and ’60s.
“It’s important to remember that right up through the 1970s, most signs were painted by hand. It was a big industry that required a lot of sign painters. Signs were the primary advertising for most businesses. These businesses really depended on sign painters.”
After Marshall’s untimely death, Les Swanson continued to run the company but at some point renamed it to Swanson.
“I don’t know how long Swanson was in business,” says John, “but I remember my dad showing me billboards with the Swanson nameplate on the bottom, maybe in the early 1980s. I was born in 1964 and my memory is probably from the ’70s and maybe early ’80s.”
Those two companies, Seelander and Swanson and Beverly Sign Co., transformed the look of Chicago’s businesses with incredibly creative design and outstanding craftsmanship. They created the Chicago style of sign work that was meant not just to identify and inform but to advertise—to create interest and desire in the viewer.
Some of that material that John shared gave insight into the unique way Marshall ran the company. He was ahead of his time in how he built the business and viewed his employees. He published a monthly newsletter for staff and customers where he told of the shop’s recent projects. He also spoke of the company’s philosophy as these excerpts show:
Seelander and Swanson did the full range of sign work, from showcards to billboards. This sampling of their billboard work comes from a collection of photos that are part of the University of Kansas library.
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