--- title: "Inside the Valley Relics Museum, Where the San Fernando Valley Never Dies" description: "Tucked inside a pair of airplane hangars at Van Nuys Airport, a nonprofit museum has spent a quarter-century rescuing the signs, cars and souvenirs of a San Fernando Valley that the wrecking ball nearly erased." category: "Los Angeles" category_url: https://herald.la/category/los-angeles author: "Tyler Grant" published: 2026-06-30T00:48:00.000Z updated: 2026-06-30T00:48:00.000Z canonical: https://herald.la/article/inside-the-valley-relics-museum-where-the-san-fernando-valley-never-dies tags: ["San Fernando Valley", "museums", "Los Angeles history", "neon signs", "Van Nuys", "Americana"] --- # Inside the Valley Relics Museum, Where the San Fernando Valley Never Dies Tucked inside a pair of airplane hangars at Van Nuys Airport, a nonprofit museum has spent a quarter-century rescuing the signs, cars and souvenirs of a San Fernando Valley that the wrecking ball nearly erased. In a city that bulldozes its past to build the next version of itself, one museum is a counterargument made of neon and chrome. ## A museum born from a search that came up empty It began, as Valley obsessions often do, with a frustrating internet search. Tommy Gelinas wanted to learn more about the drive-ins and neon-lit landmarks he remembered from growing up in the San Fernando Valley — and found almost nothing. That gap, he has said, became "a great obsession." Over roughly 25 years he turned it into one of Los Angeles's most unexpected institutions: the [Valley Relics Museum](https://www.valleyrelicsmuseum.org/), housed in two hangars at Van Nuys Airport. The nonprofit calls itself "a family-friendly journey through the San Fernando Valley's past," but it's closer to a time capsule — a sprawling collection rescued from dumpsters, estate sales and shuttered businesses before it could vanish. ## Neon, chrome and rhinestones The hangars hold an eclectic census of Valley life. Towering vintage neon signs dominate — among them the marquee from the Palomino Club, the legendary North Hollywood country-music venue, and the Pioneer Chicken sign that once glowed over fast-food corners across the region. Classic cars gleam under the lights, including a Cadillac customized by [Nudie Cohn](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nudie_Cohn), the North Hollywood tailor who stitched rhinestone suits for Elvis and Roy Rogers. Elsewhere: 1980s BMX bikes, a playable retro arcade, restaurant menus, yearbooks and memorabilia tied to Ritchie Valens, the Pacoima-born rock-and-roll pioneer. The effect is less curated exhibition than beloved attic — chaotic, personal and oddly moving. ## "Our local history is global history" Gelinas makes no small claims for the Valley, arguing that a place that has been farm town, aerospace corridor, film back lot and skateboarding cradle "helped shape the nation." For many visitors the history is viscerally personal — the jolt of spotting a menu from a restaurant their parents loved, or a sign that once marked their corner. "All of the good things that happened growing up in the Valley is here," one longtime Angeleno told [ABC7](https://abc7.com/videoClip/19364692/). ## A living archive in a working airport The setting is fitting. Van Nuys Airport is itself a mid-century artifact, and the hangars give the collection room no conventional gallery could, with a raw, behind-the-scenes feel suited to material this vernacular. Valley Relics is generally open on weekends, with modest admission and free entry for young children; as a nonprofit, it leans on memberships and donations. Confirm current hours before visiting. In the meantime, it stands as the last line of defense between Southern California's vanishing past and the landfill — one neon sign at a time. ## Sources - [Valley Relics Museum — ABC7 report](https://abc7.com/videoClip/19364692/) - [Valley Relics Museum — official site](https://www.valleyrelicsmuseum.org/) - [Valley Relics Museum — visitor guide](https://www.timeout.com/los-angeles/museums/valley-relics-museum)