Canadian Road Signs

[Michael Dorosh]

No, seriously.



I've tried to google for information on these, or better images, but drew a blank. Can anyone point me to some info on the odd winged-shape decorations that Belgian highway signs seemed to have during the Second World War?

[Rich Payne]

Originally Posted by Michael Dorosh

No, seriously.
Can anyone point me to some info on the odd winged-shape decorations that Belgian highway signs seemed to have during the Second World War?

I'd better just warn you before the 'noorderburen' come down on you like a ton of bricks but judging by the destinations, that signpost is very much in The Netherlands.

[Michael Dorosh]

Originally Posted by Rich Payne

I'd better just warn you before the 'noorderburen' come down on you like a ton of bricks but judging by the destinations, that signpost is very much in The Netherlands.

Any useful information would be welcome, especially a decent image of the device itself. I've googled for both Belgian and Dutch information but am coming up empty.

[Rich Payne]

Michael, no great mystery, simply a sign set up by the touring organisation ANWB.

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Im...-wegwijzer.jpg

Rich.

[Michael Dorosh]

Originally Posted by Rich Payne

Michael, no great mystery, simply a sign set up by the touring organisation ANWB.

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Im...-wegwijzer.jpg

Rich.

The mystery is what the symbol represents, how widely used are they, etc. Do you have any further information? Were they in use on all signs in 1944-45, or just select routes?

What is the ANWB?

[Rich Payne]

It's just a double winged wheel. The ANWB were originally a cyclist's touring organisation, nowadays a motoring organisation including cars, like the UK's AA or RAC. I'm not sure what you have in Canada.

It seems that they started putting up signposts and had a monopoly on it for many years. What we see in the photograph is simply a pre-war Netherlands signpost.

Judging by what I can read, they were used on the main roads out of towns. Presumably just to remind motorists who broke down kilometers from anywhere that they should have joined !

I expect that one of the Dutch members can give you more detail. I'm relatively new in the low countries !

[wim sikkelbein]

Originally Posted by Michael Dorosh

The mystery is what the symbol represents, how widely used are they, etc. Do you have any further information? Were they in use on all signs in 1944-45, or just select routes?

What is the ANWB?

The symbol does indeed represent the dutch cyclist organisation ANWB, a winged wheel as Rich already mentioned.
This symbol was used troughout the netherlands starting in 1892 with wooden examples and from 1896 with metal ones, with already 4000 of them in 1939. From 1934 a smaller model was introduced. There was also a "mushroom" version from 1919 onwards which stands close to the ground with 2000 of those by 1942.
The first signs were used between large cities in 1908 and by 1913 the 2000 example was unveiled so I imaging that also provincial and smaller roads got their own signs by then.

information from:
http://www.anwb.nl/over-anwb/kernact...wijzering.html
http://www.anwb.nl/binaries/pdf/over...3175_28014.pdf

[Mark W. Tonner]

Canadian road signs ...