Iconic West Michigan Kids Store Sign Finds Prime Placement in National Museum
For children who grew up in the Kalamazoo area, a fond memory is a visit to the Tot to Teen Village. The store specialized in both children's clothing and toys.
While the store is just a memory now, its iconic sign, made in a design of toy blocks found a home at the American Sign Museum in Cincinnati. Not only is the sign part of the museum's collection but it will be capstone of an entire wing of the facility.
The Tot to Teen Village closed in 2017 after a run in the Kalamazoo area that started in the 1930s. The sign was deemed too special to meet a wrecking ball and was donated to the Ohio museum that houses roadside Americana in the form of business signs.
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The history of the store in Michigan goes back to 1937 as shared on the museum's site. The store
was called “village” because the interior featured half a dozen large, elaborate kid-friendly structures that defined different areas of the store – a castle, an old western town (with a slide), a princess zone, trees, and carpet paths.
The store was beloved by many generations of parents and children, so there was great affection for the sign. When the store
closed in 2017, the new owner wanted to find a new home for the sign and so it was moved in March of 2018. After attempts to donate it to the area history museum but challenged by the sign’s size, it was donated to the American Sign Museum.
The sign is 15 feet across so the museum says it was a difficult one to place in their collection but will now sit overhead welcoming guests into a wing of the museum dedicated as a classroom space and youth-themed exhibits.
Here's how the Tot to Teen Village sign looked on the actual store back in the 2010s. This location is on Kilgore Road in Portage and is now home to an Asian grocery,
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Gallery Credit: Lauren Gordon