The 42-inch wooden letters on City Hall were painted white and changed by workers by means of a catwalk behind them.

Milwaukee City Hall recognized the bank’s 60th anniversary in 1983. As the Milwaukee County Historical Society explains on its website, this “lighted message system was added to the south side of the tower facing the intersections of Wells, Water, and Market streets” in 1906.

The message rotated based on local events, or simply offered a warm welcome to Milwaukee. As some will remember, the letters famously appeared in the opening credits of beloved sitcom Laverne & Shirley (see inset), which ran for eight seasons on ABC. Due to increased maintenance costs, Mayor John Norquist and the city’s Historic Preservation Commission had the letters taken down in 1988. They were placed in storage at the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design, and are now held by the historical society, which plans to restore some of them as funds become available.