PROVO, Utah — As you drive across the scenic state of Utah, you may find yourself stopping for gas. However, for one Provo man, the real destination is not the gas station but rather his very own collection of signs housed in the newly established Sparks Museum.
While traveling down Center Street in Provo toward Utah Lake, drivers won’t spot a gas station but will instead see an eclectic display of signs curated by Sparky Sparks.
"You know, you get a few signs when you're out collecting," Sparks said, reflecting on the origins of his collection. "You put them up on the poles, and then you go, 'Oh, well, that would look really cool if we had more.’"
What was a modest collection of signs eventually expanded until they lined the road.
“And I said, well, I’d have to find that many signs," Sparks added, chuckling at the obsessive nature of his pursuit.
"The signs that are on poles, the big six-foot signs that are outside, that’s the largest collection in the world," he explained.
Despite the quirky nature of his hobby, Sparks has found joy in his collection journey.
"I see all this, and I can't believe, how on earth did I ever accumulate this many signs?" He said.
After traveling around the country to buy signs, the challenge arose when his storage business didn’t have many more spots for more signs.
“Our eldest daughter said to me, 'Dad, you need to build a place to put some of your nicer stuff,'" Sparks recalled.
After years of hard work, the Sparks Museum was born.
Take for instance this sign, notice the spelling is “Mobile” and not “Mobil” as in Exxon Mobil.
The reason? Well this was another company entirely according to Sparks which was Utah-based (hence the Lakester car in its logo.)
Or take this one, many Utahns might remember UTOCO gas stations.
This exact sign was actually on a gas station Sparky remembers filling up at.
"The fun of it is when you go out and you find something, and you find stuff that you had no idea you were going to find," Sparks shared. "This is like fishing. The fun is, you know, the fishing, and when you hook something.”
"I worked at a gas station as a kid, and lots of people would buy $1 worth of gas," he added.
Now open, Sparks welcomes anyone interested in enjoying his collection.
"We're looking for brides who are out of the box, companies that want to have a party in a cool place, and people that are dreamers,” he said.
To find out more you can follow the link here.
As for the future of his collection, Sparks believes it is reaching its peak.
“Actually, I'm pretty done collecting. I don't have really room, and I've bought more signs than I have room for,” he noted.
Despite some grumbles from fellow collectors about the lack of sales, he maintains that it's not getting any smaller.
"They're mad at me because I haven't sold stuff here—I buy, but I don't sell.” he said with a laugh
So if your in the mood for a time capsule take a trip, and take a few pictures because its a sight to see.
“It’s really rejuvenating for an old guy like me," he concluded. "I've never been old before. I'd never been trained how to be old. I just suddenly got here.”
Adding its the perfect place to “arouse [your] interest and build [your] own dreams!”
