The purpose of this thesis is to define the historical commercial center. To write this history, it was necessary to identify the developmental factors affecting the form and/or placement of the building sign. Historic photographs of the Indianapolis commercial center and other primary sources were used to document the popular sign forms of that era.Sign history is not a subject that is well represented in preservation or urban planning literature. Thus, the preservation and/or adaptive use of historic commercial districts often lacks strong references to the district's building sign heritage. This history is a guide for those professionals whose job it is to develop design guidelines and sign ordinances for early 20th-century historic commercial districts. / Department of Architecture