Enamel sign, 'Nugget Boot Polish'

Enamel advertising sign, 'Nugget Boot Polish', black lettering on yellow, c1910, manufactured by Imperial Enamel Company, Birmingham.

Passengers waiting for the next train were a captive audience for companies wanting to sell their products. Stations had plenty of useful spaces for advertisements and the arrival of mass-produced metal signs filled platforms and booking halls. But with so many notices, it was hard to pick out the station’s nameboard. Adding station names to benches and lampposts helped, and some companies kept advertisements a set distance away from nameboards to help with clarity.