This post, “The Story of the Origin of the Term Billboard,” was, of course, our Annual April Fool’s Day folly, which we have posted every year for the last seven consecutive years. Thank you to those who played along and did not spoil it for the others. And please, those of you who are disturbed that we have somehow debased the history of the billboard, our apologies.
The History of the First Billboards in America
Washington, D.C., April 1, 2025
It’s that time of year, when we like to share our historical perspective of how the first modern-day billboards came to be, including the origination of the terms ‘Outdoor Advertising’, ‘Showing’, and ‘Outdoor Salesman’.
Many of you veterans in the Outdoor Advertising business know the story of the first billboard.
For those unfamiliar, here is a story on the historical origins of modern Out of Home (OOH) advertising.
It innocently started with a young man named William Boarders and a tough economy. William was a walking sign carrier—a sandwich sign board wearer. William, or Bill, worked with his Father and brothers in the family-owned haberdashery business.
The Great Depression created a hardship on his family’s custom-made clothing enterprise. Bill, being the youngest, was forced to abandon the warm confines of working inside the store (or indoor) and go ‘outdoor’ and ‘work the streets’ at his father’s insistence. Bill worked on the street, or ‘outdoor,’ hawking his family’s business with flyers and shouting slogans, all the while wearing a custom-made sandwich board sign. The first sign was a relatively crude build, hand-lettered by his mother and constructed by his father, who used leather suspenders from the store’s inventory to hold the signs in place over his small shoulders.
While other haberdasheries and businesses failed, Boarders’ men’s clothing business flourished, attributed to Bill’s continued outdoor advertising efforts through the tough economy and into the recovery. The Father’s sign idea, introduced through his son, proved to be effective advertising. When continued during tough times, it contributed to a more significant percentage of business success compared to those businesses that did not advertise.
Local merchants witnessed the success of the family haberdashery, thanks to young Bill Boarders’ sandwich signs. The messages were evident as they saw the walking signs going to and fro in front of their shops. They asked young Bill for an opportunity to promote their business on his ‘boards’. Soon, Bill was leasing his “sign space” for their messages and adding his first employees.
As billboard demand from other merchants grew, so did Bill’s business. At one point, he had a team of 100 men carrying his billboards throughout the city, targeting specific neighborhoods. The term ‘showing’ evolved from the number of men to be hired or appear on the street with advertising. Targeting and budgetary considerations determined whether Advertisers would place an order for half or 50% of the workforce, thereby requesting a 50% showing of billboards. Or 25% for a 25 showing.
And as for William Boarders’ employees? The walking, hawking, sandwich billboard salespeople?
They became known, just like Bill, as ‘Outdoor Salesman.’
Eventually, Bill Boarders became wealthy from his billboard business and started buying and leasing land. On that land, Bill built his first stationary billboard, and the rest is billboard history.
Note: This article is pure parody and is in no way based on fact. Happy April Fools’!