Neon Museum

Neon Museum
The former La Concha Motel lobby, seen here as the Neon Museum's visitor center in 2017
Map
Established1996
October 27, 2012 (2012-10-27) (public opening)
Location770 North Las Vegas Boulevard, Las Vegas, Nevada
Coordinates36°10′35.4468″N 115°8′6.9972″W / 36.176513000°N 115.135277000°W / 36.176513000; -115.135277000
TypeArt museum
Visitors1,800 (2007)[1]
200,000 (2023)[2]
Websiteneonmuseum.org

The Neon Museum in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States, features signs from old casinos and other businesses displayed outdoors on 2.27 acres (0.92 ha). Efforts to establish a neon sign museum were underway in the late 1980s, but stalled due to a lack of resources. On September 18, 1996, the Las Vegas City Council voted to fund such a project, to be known as the Neon Museum. The organization started out by re-installing old signage in downtown Las Vegas, to attract more visitors to the area.

Young Electric Sign Company (YESCO) had manufactured many neon signs in the city, and the company had a storage site for old signs which would eventually become part of the Neon Museum collection. In 2000, as YESCO prepared to close its storage lot, the city provided the museum with land to start its own. Tours of the new site, known as the Neon Boneyard, began in 2001, by appointment only.

The lobby of the former La Concha Motel, located on the Las Vegas Strip, was donated to the museum and moved there in 2006, eventually becoming its visitor center. Construction to convert the lobby began in May 2011, and the museum officially opened to the general public on October 27, 2012, eliminating the appointment system.

The Neon Museum's collection includes more than 200 signs. An expansion of the museum site began in 2017, although hundreds of neon artifacts still remained in off-site storage due to space limitations. In 2024, the museum announced plans to relocate to two larger, nearby sites at 18b The Las Vegas Arts District. The project will include relocation of the La Concha lobby, and the museum is expected to open in the new locations around 2027.

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