Looking to have a REtro Wedding in Utah County

Are you tired of the same old looking wedding venue? The Castle, the White Barn, the office gone wedding venue? Look no further. Sparks Museum and Event Center is unlike anyone else and will leave your guests with so much to talk about. We have over 13 bathrooms, antique cars, a brides room with its own private bathroom and 8 stools for your bridesmaids. We have garage doors that roll up for an indoor outdoor option. Get married outside with the back drop of a river and then move inside to our retro space filled with colors and antiques. We have a sound system for dancing and a microphone too. Plenty of parking so you can relax when deciding how many to invite. We can seat over 400 at tables comfortably and if you decide a small wedding is for you not a problem with so much to look at even 5 tables looks great. Our space in Provo, Utah is waiting for that perfect couple who wants a wedding that wows!!!

corporate events love 0ur utah county space

We love hosting corporate events. Our vintage vibe allows for all kinds of options in the Corporate Event Planning. We are perfect for Christmas parties, employee of the month celebrations, lunch events, and so much more. We are the most unique space in Utah , located in Provo right by the airport we would make a great place for anyone flying in who wants to host a party. You may need a place for a speaking engagment, an auction, a charity event, a car show. Our retro space is build for Corporate events although we would make a beautiful backdrop for a wedding too. They sky is the limit here in Provo, Utah .

Have you ever experienced a drum bus? OUr Utah venue has…

Drum Bus team building activity at the Stratus HR employee of the month event.

Our Venue was ecstatic when Stratus Hr rented our space and had Drumbus.com come for their event. It was amazing to listen to the guests participate. It wasn’t long before the guests were drumming together, laughing and team building. Sparks was a perfect place for both a dinner as well as an activity of this kind.

HellHound leather visits Ut County corporate venue

Hellhound leather keychains with Sparks and an antique car image to give to wedding guests, corporate event guests or any clients coming to our Utah County Venue.

Hellhound Leather made the most beautiful key chains for a fundraising event held at Sparks Museum and Event Center. They took a neon sign we have and made a stamp of this car then added Sparks to it. We think they turned out beautiful and share them with clients to remember their corporate event, wedding, reunion, etc.

the sparks sign

This sign was made in 1965 to go on a 48 unit apartment building in Provo that Sparky and his father built. This sign was on there along with the name Roman Gardens. When the building was sold they kept the Sparks sign and hung it in the garage. We, of course had to add the sign (since it is our name) to the collection.

Chrysler Pymouth

Plymouth sign came from our friend and picker Chuck Dudley. It was a rough sign that we needed because of the colors and look. Again it is a sign we just like:)

A & W Rootbeer

In 1919 a young veteran named Roy Allen began a Root Beer stand in Lodi California. In 1922 he brought in a friend named Frank Wright and they opened another stand in Lodi. soon they leased their stands to others to operate and trademarked the new name of A & W from their names and went to Sacramento and began franchising A & W Restaurants. They pioneered restaurant franchising . Our A & W sign came from Helper Utah and is a reminder what a good idea plus hard work and ambition can do. The International franchise is huge!

Marilyn Monroe, elvis and the rat pack

A friend in Gillette Wyoming , named Jeff Wonder had acquired the collection of our famous people who changed the world in one way or another. Elvis through Rock and Roll, Marilyn Monroe with not only her beauty but what the world doesn’t know is she had an IQ higher than Einstein. She was the sexiest most impacting Movie star in the World taking the industry by storm.

The Rat Pack (Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Sammy Davis JR) came together and became the gang that played in movies together as well as just ran around together. Individually each having their own sound, singing songs that are timeless.

The Blues Brothers are a more contemporary group. In 1980 they stared in the Movie The Blues Brothers and many went on to star in Saturday Night Live.

steam tractor collection

When Sparky was a young guy he remembered seeing someone with an old steam tractor that he fell in love with. Years later he saw a collector selling his collection in Oregon and thought ,”I will bid on those since Oregon is close to Utah” he bid on many different tractors winning the bids on 6 of them. The oldest being a 1907 Minneapolis Moline. The steam tractor revolutionized farming in America. Not only could they pull huge plows but they could run combines and other ancillary equipment in farming. Going from the horse and plow to the Steam tractor. It 1917 Henry Ford came out with the Fordson Tractor which was a gas operated tractor. They build factories all over the world making it affordable for farmers to buy .

Big Boy

Our Big Boy came from Joplin, Missouri from a friend named Chuck. He purchased it at a swap meat called Dixie Gas in Sevierville, Tenesee put on by Chip Floe . It is the largest gas show in the Southeast. Chuck knows we are always looking for cool stuff so bought it and held it for us. Big Boy has always been a favorite from when they started in Los Angelas. Great memories eating the french toast and blueberry syrup.

Hand carved Native American indian

Our hand carved out of one tree Native American Indians came from an antique store out near Tremonton ,Utah. While Sparky was visiting an antique event near Ogden that has dealers from all over that come to show and tell as well as sell their treasures. This is where he met a dealer that had one of these beautiful carvings. After discussing price he actually had three that we could not pass up. Sparky bought two and his son bought the other. They sat at his home in Sundance out front for years until we recently relocated them to be on display in the Museum.

How do we set our signs

Since we are in the business of “growing” signs we have it down to a science. First we pick the place that we want to “plant” the footing:) We then dig it and pour the cement and put in the rebar so our sign is nice and secure ! We don’t like shallow rooted signs, they need to withstand the stormy weather. Next we pick our pole, either one that has been collected or one that we have custom built (yes we do that too) Then the ring on top. Which ring for which sign. Pick the sign and ring and set the pole on the footing. Just like that our beautiful new sign on a pole has been grown into what we like to call our field of signs.

the “fluted” gas pump

Every collector knows the Holy Grail of gas pumps is the Roman Column Pump. Sparky looked for a Roman column for years and never was able to find one he could afford. They sell for $20-$60k at auctions. One day a manager at the Lakeside Storage called to tell Sparky that a guy stopped by and the office and left a note asking if we would be interested in a “fluted” gas pump that he had.

Sparky knew exactly what “fluted” meant and immediately called the guy. He was from Nevada but was living in Springville and when he was a kid worked at the Stateline Service Station where they had the “fluted” gas pump for pumping Kerosene. The mans father had worked at the station and he assumed his dad had actually pumped his gas from the pump so he bought the pump from the sation ages before to restore it as a family memory. Later he found out that his dad actually had never pumped gas from it so he was ready to sell.

Sparky bought it at a fair price and hauled it home to paint and assemble parts. It lacked the glass cylinder which he replaced and restored it for our collection. The hose that is on it was a new old stock original hose he got from Max Egertson who used to own the Texaco Bulk Plant in Provo and he had a few hoses he gave Sparky that he had many years ago. The pump was sold to the Stateline Serviece Station and maintained by a SLC gas pump company.

Frontier, another “cool” Brand.

Frontier is another very cool brand. It began when the two partners in Colorados Bay Oil company couldn’t get along and divided assets. One went to a refinery in Cody Wyoming and started Frontier Oil in 1940. Their first contract was making 100 octane fuel for aircraft in the war. Sparks Museum and Event Center has one of the first signs for gas advertising they sold. It the 5 foot “Golden Cowboy” Frontier sign and is a sign Sparky restored by hand and is one of seven known to exist. Finding that sign is a super “Picker” story! He found it while sitting in Hawaii surprisingly. He son Tim was in Nebraska hunting geese so of course Sparky took the opportunity to hunt for a sign. He looked up the antique dealers in the area and began calling. No luck however, all bad news. In desperation he asked if they even knew anyone who had an old gas pump or sign. ONe of the girls said yes she did and gave Sparky the number. Amazingly the man had a Calso sign and agreed to sell it. Tim was able to meet up with the new contact, yippee. Tim took a short video of the Calso sing plus many others including the two big Frontier signs. I negotiated and was able to get the deal. Finding a way to get Tim the cash was another story but after jumping through hoops and being creative we got them. Sparky picked them up during a different trip as remember Tim was on a hunting trip, and he wasn’t “

oo7 anyone

Our cute little Bede 5 jet that hangs from the ceiling is one of about 300 that exist. It is the smallest jet in the world and is seen on James Bonds 1983 film “Octopussy “ flying thru a barn at 325 miles per hour.

Growing up in Los Angelas

The Hancock gasoline sign came as a reminder of when Sparky was a little boy growing up in Los Angelas. Sparky used to go to the LaBrea tar pits. Hancock Oil was from LaBrea.

Shell shell shell

The shell signs have come from all over including from Canada. Sparky bought Sehll gas in California as a kid but never knew it’s a European based Company till he started collecting signs. Shell changed the World of Petroleum while people were sleeping:) They invented and shared the means of deep water drilling which makes much more of our oil available today.

sparkys hamburger (Copy)

Sparky’s Hamburger sign came from a picker friend in Joplin who saw it while pickin and knew Sparky had to have it. He bought it for him and let him figure out where to put it. Thats the thing about making friends that are “pickers” they look out for each other when those friendships are made and stay in contact seeing how each other are doing. I as the daughter of Sparky have been in the car many times as he will call up a “picker” friend to just see how they are doing and how they are feeling. What is happening whats new and what is the recent hot item out in the collectors world of oil and gas.

Old guys like other old guys stories

When you visit Sparks Museum and Event center you will see our beautiful Roman Column gas pump along with our Red Indian Gas pump. Both are fun stories of how we got them. They are each very valuable and hard to find at any price.

Its all about the story

Sparky learned a long time ago it is not often about the currency. Many collectors start off saying the do not want to sell the wanted treasure until…. the right thing is offered and then game on. Many collections are priceless to the owner and are thought of as a treasure not to be bought. This is where the fun begins and negotiations take place. Most owners don’t even know there is something other than cash that will entice them so creativity is a huge part of the fun. Unfortunately auction houses entered the game and almost gone are the days of negotiating or trading . Makes it so the stories are gone and it is not as fun as it once was. Sparky is all about the hunt, the game, the stories, the new friends and yes about finally getting the sign.