CASPER, Wyo. — A first time time visitor to Casper might be taken aback by the curious ghost sign on the side of a downtown building.
While the building appears relatively modern at first glance, a fading painting betrays a long history.
The painting depicts an idyllic living room from the 1940s, complete with a plush sofa, tastefully ornate table and a cozy fireplace.
From 1938 to 1980, the building was home to the Welsh Furniture Company.
The sign was likely painted around that time, but afterwords was hidden by an adjoining building.
By 2006 the now dilapidated adjoining building was demolished for a parking lot. Another neighboring building on the corner of South Durban and First Street, which was home to the Mountain View Subs Shop, was demolished in 2010.
It was shortly after that when the owners of 120 South Durbin gave the building a remodel and uncovered the mural. The facade is now covered with a new brick veneer and the remainder of the building covered in new stucco, but the ghost of Welsh Furniture was spared.
Welsh Furniture founder Horace Welsh closed his business in 1980 and retired in Phoenix, Arizona.
He died on Oct. 5, 1982. According to his obituary, his wife Frances Welsh died in August of that year.
An idyllic living room of the 1940s is seen in a ghost sign on the side of 120 South Durbin. (Dan Cepeda, Oil City) 
(Dan Cepeda, Oil City) 
An extreme closeup of a couch on a ghost sign at 120 South Durbin. (Dan Cepeda, Oil City) 
The original contractor left a logo in the lower left. (Dan Cepeda, Oil City) 
A photo of Welsh Furniture is seen in a 1963 Star-Tribune advertorial.
