By Eric Curl
Aug. 30, 2026 – A fading wall-painted advertisement, known as a “ghost sign,” from the late 19th century has taken a beating from time and needs some touching up, according to Luis Posada, who happens to own the wall on which the ad is painted.
Fortunately, the paint used back in the day, which probably included lead, likely helped preserve the Uneeda Biscuit ad at 234 Price St. after other advertisements painted over it faded away, said Posada, who purchased the rowhouse unit at Price and Perry streets earlier this year. Still, the Uneeda Biscuit ad by the National Biscuit Co. (later Nabisco) is fading and Posada said he would rather it not disappear entirely.
“I’m obsessed with it,” he said when asked why he wanted to intervene rather than leave the sign alone. “I think it’s one of the coolest things.”
That is the motivation for Posada’s petition going before the Historic Sites & Monuments Commission on Thursday, which seeks approval to restore the sign – but only to a certain degree.
He doesn’t want to make it look new, he said during a recent interview with Savannah Agenda.
“We don’t want to lose the aesthetic of the ghost sign … but we don’t want to lose it altogether,” he said, adding that he wanted to make the lettering and imagery more legible and “readable, not perfect.”
Such restorations are a source of contention among preservationists – – with some favoring them and others arguing they should simply be documented and allowed to age naturally.
“Some people are like just leave it alone, right? And let it run its course,” Posada said. “But … it makes me sad to lose something like that.”
Staff is recommending the commission postpone the request from the Sept. 3 meeting until Nov. 5. They want Posada to hire an art conservator to assess the appropriate process, colors and materials, provide specifications showing the proposed products are suitable for historic painted brick and identify where masonry repointing would occur and how it would be tooled.
The staff report includes concerns that repainting the Uneeda sign could erase some of the qualities that make it a ghost sign in the first place, with a suggestion that documentation and preservation be considered instead of restoration.
That is exactly the outcome Posada says he is trying to avoid. He compared his preferred level of intervention to about a 1.5 on a seven-point scale, with seven representing a complete repaint.
However, staff’s concerns extend beyond the amount of repainting. Staff warns that a proposed acrylic paint could trap moisture in the historic brick and soft lime mortar, potentially causing cracking, spalling and other masonry damage. The report also questioned whether a proposed treatment would adequately penetrate brick already covered by paint.
Posada said he and Savannah artist David Laughlin have researched products intended to protect the masonry while continuing to allow moisture to escape.
“We’re being very careful about the products we use and how we use them, so it doesn’t look like it’s been messed with,” Posada said.
Staff also noted that Laughlin has completed numerous murals around Savannah but that the application did not document previous conservation or restoration work. References were provided from Savannah City Market, Old Town Trolley Tours and the Savannah Visitor Information Center.
Posada said he deliberately sought an artist rather than simply hiring a painter because of the unusual nature of the project.
“If I was going to do this as a new sign, I could just hire a painter or anybody,” he said.
If the commission ultimately recommends approval, the proposal must also go before the Historic District Board of Review at their meeting on Sept. 9.
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