The very first sign to go up, in 1906, was on the Great North Road (to become the A1, now the A1000) at Hatfield in Hertfordshire. The design was immediately recognisable in that it was circular and in the AA colours of yellow & black. It differed considerably from later designs, notleast in being mounted on a street lamp rather than a wall. The model is by the excellent English manufacturer DG Models / Autocraft Pluswho also model AA vehicles.

The most common design is the circular sign approximately 1 m in diameter. The earliest show the interleaved letters "AA" but not in a badge form. A rare second style shows the AA encapsulated in a badge, but without wings. These pre-date the merger of the Automobile Association and the Motor Union, whose badge of a winged wheel, seen head-on, gave the merged Association the familiar winged AA badge. Signs which state "AA & MU" are from that period. The first circular post-merger badges are enamelled in a very deep violet-blue and not black. These are rare. Eventually, the "and MU" was dropped leaving just Automobile Associatio with the winged badge and in black on yellow. The badge-shaped signs are the second most common and these all say "AA & MU" and date from just after the merger. Scottish signs were erected by the AA and Scottish RAC, there being less rivalvry between the two organisations north of the border! Irish AA signs were also prevalent before the 1922 partition and many of these are in Gaelic script.

Colne Valley Postal History Museum

Colne Valley Postal History Museum

Colne Valley Postal History Museum

Colne Valley Postal History MUseum

Ipswich Transport Museum

Ipswich Transport Museum

1st design after AA & MU merger

Ipswich Transport Museum

1st design after AA & MU merger

Ipswich Transport Museum

Ipswich Transport Museum

Ipswich Transport Museum

Ipswich Transport Museum

Ipswich Transport Museum

Ipswich Transport Museum

In Situ

Non-standard wording and layout"THE Automobile Association"

Norham Station Museum, Northumberland

AA and Scottish RAC. No mention of London.

Norham Station Museum, Northumberland.

AA and Scottish RAC. No mention of London.

In Situ

Non-standard wording and layout"THE Automobile Association"

CVPHM

CVPHM under restoration

CVPHM

CVPHM under restoration

Amberley Working Museum

East Anglian Transport Museum

Second style befor MU merger, AA badge with no wings, no black bar

Private Collection

Second stylebefore MU merger, AA badge with no wings, no black bar

Coventry Transport Museum (stored)

Coventry Transport Museum(stored)

Kettering Museum

Oxford Bus Museum

In Situ

In Situ

In Situ

In Situ

In Situ

1st design after AA & MU merger

In Situ

In Situ

In Situ

In Situ

In Situ

Private Collection

CVPHM

Private Collection, Essex

Final "winged badge" design

In Situ

In Situ

Cotswold Motor Museum

Cotswold Motor Museum

Cotswold Motor Museum

In situ

In Situ

Cotswold Motor Museum

Cotswold Motor Museum

Cotswold Motor Museum

Cotswold Motor Museum

Cotswold Motor Museum

Cotswold Motor Museum

Pre-marger AA badge

Cotswold Motor Museum

South African AA

Cotswold Motor Museum

Erected below the main sign to attract small boys catapult shots! Size 8" diam.

In Situ

1st design after AA & MU merger

Ipswich Transport Museum

Stolen early 2006, replaced 13/9/06 by plastic replica

Replacement 13/9/06plastic replica

In Situ

(Notice only one place nearby, the rest is sea!)

Private Collection Essex

Private Collection Lexden

Colne valley Postal History Museum

AA collection - (Was Milestones - gone)

AA collection - (Was Milestones - gone)

Earliest design in widespread use - before adoption of the "badge" logo and the merger with the Motor Union

In Situ

In Situ

AA collection - (Was Milestones - gone)

In Situ

Milestones

In Situ

In Situ - 2 signs both different

In Situ

Private Collection

Private Collection, Hampshire

Second style befor MU merger, AA badge with no wings, no black bar

Private Collection, Wirral

In Situ

Sold On Ebay 1/9/06

Private Collection, Wirral

In Situ

Private Collection, Wirral

Second style befor MU merger, AA badge with no wings, no black bar

Private Collection, Wirral

In Situ

In Situ

"Olveston" In Situ

Beaulieu Autojumble Sept 06

Beaulieu Autojumble Sept 06

Beaulieu Autojumble Sept 06

In Situ

Baldock Mill Museum, Bourne

Beaulieu Autojumble Sept 06

CVPHM

Early Blue enamel bar

1st design after AA & MU merger

CVPHM

Fitted with rear bracket

CVPHM - offsite

Private Collection, Kessingland

CVPHM

CVPHM

CVPHM

CVPHM

Possibly one of the rarer and most unusual signs is this one in Richmond Yorks marking the centre line of the 1927 Total Eclipse. It was visible across a large swathe of north east England. How many others were there?

ThisColchester sign is different from the early one shown right, indicating different distances from London and Witham. One explanation could be that distances are measured from the actual sign and not the centre of town. This one also swaps Rowhedge for Ipswich. CVPHM Collection.

Private Collection, Essex

Early Blue enamel bar,1st design after AA & MU merger. Witham appears to be only 11 3/4 miles away on this one

In Situ

Battlesbridge Motorcycle Museum

Almeley Herefordshire