Reward For Missing Bakersfield Sign Linked To Tuolumne County

Bakersfield, CA — There is a notable reward for a sign that was stolen from Bakersfield, and confirmed to have made a stop in Tuolumne County, several years ago.

The iconic neon Trout’s Bar sign was taken from the former bar’s location on North Chester Avenue in Bakersfield in May of 2017. The manager at the time, Allan Thomas Rockwell, allegedly removed it for repairs. Rockwell has Tuolumne County ties and took it to an address on Jacksonville Road in Sonora, according to information from authorities. It is no longer there, though.

Unrelated, Rockwell, who also reportedly went by names “Ricky Smith” and Allan Thomas Smith,” was found guilty in February of 2022 of 18 felony counts related to elder theft and identity theft, in Tuolumne County Superior Court.

Trout’s Bar opened in 1945 and was destroyed by fire in 2022. In February of last year, the owner of the former bar property in Bakersfield gave legal ownership of the still-missing sign to the Kern County Museum in Bakersfield. Hoping to find the historical artifact, the museum is offering a $5,000 reward for verified information leading to its location, or $10,000 for its return.

Another Tuolumne County twist, the Kern County Museum’s director is Mike McCoy, the former longtime Superintendent of the Sonora Union High School District, who moved away in 2015.

McCoy says, “This is an important piece of California history. We know the sign is out there, and it is the property of the Kern County Museum. It weighs about 400 pounds and is not that easy to hide. We have had a number of tips about the sign being back in Bakersfield or even Texas. The community wants the sign back, and we are confident that this generous reward will help bring it home to our museum.”

Anyone with information about the sign should call Investigator Paul Lopez at 661-996-5360.