The Service Station
Early travelers by automobile were intrepid folks. They had to be. Places to buy gasoline were scarce, limited to the interior of towns. In the beginning gasoline was purchased at drug stores. As the number of cars on the road increased, motorists found fuel at general stores and hardware stores, and sometimes at dry cleaners. In the earliest days of the automobile many of these establishments were not open for business on Sundays, so road trips required careful planning. It was soon evident that a business opportunity existed.
Some businesses installed curbside pumps on the sidewalk in front of their store beforehand, but the first designed and built filling station was opened in Pittsburgh in 1913 by the Gulf Refining Company. It was built in the design of a pagoda, offered attendants to pump the gasoline, and also provided free water and air to those in need of them. On its first day of operation, December 1, it sold 350 gallons of gasoline through its Bowser pumps. Earlier filling “stations” had required the attendants to pump fuel into a container and carry the container to customer’s vehicle, the Gulf system pumped it directly into the car’s tank.
It wasn’t long before the filling station became ubiquitous, and competition led to the development of additional products and services for the traveling motorist. Motor oil, tires, and eventually repair services were added to the product lines of all the major oil company’s filling stations, and they became known as service stations. Starting with the first Gulf station in Pittsburgh, they offered road maps, the printing of which being another industry created by the automobile. Initially maps were offered for sale though it wasn’t long before they were given away, with the location of company service stations conveniently printed along the route.
That wasn’t all that was free. Competition was keen and gasoline was cheap. The motorist could remain in or get out of the vehicle as station attendants checked the oil, the water, the battery, the tires, washed the windshield, and pumped the gas. Vending machines offered candy, cigarettes, and cold drinks, or the attendant sold them over the counter. To attract motorists away from competitors, rewards were offered in the form of trading stamps. Many stations soon either had a tow truck or were affiliated with a towing service. National advertising focused on fuel quality and brand loyalty.
Today the service station is all but gone, replaced by convenience stores which offer gasoline. Most major supermarket chains have placed gas stations on their parking lots. It is becoming more and more difficult to find a full service station, other than in rural areas. In many small towns the service station became a gathering place, today they are in and out quick stops, more concerned in marketing the quality of their coffee than the level of service they offer the traveler. Most drivers are more concerned with the price per gallon sign than they are with the brand sign.