Gas Station Memorabilia

The Gas Stations with Convenience Stores Industry report features 2007 current and 2008 forecast estimates on the size of the industry (sales, establishments, employment) for the 47 largest world countries. The report also includes industry definition, 5-year historical trends on industry sales, establishments and employment and estimates on up to 10 sub-industries, including truck stops and filling stations.

In this car culture of ours, what could be more American than the gas station, from the roadside pit stop in the middle of nowhere to the spit-and-polish, full service city shop?

This brightly illustrated history of service stations runs the gamut from East to West, North to South, spotlighting the culture and lore of the gas-pumping garage that has kept the United States moving for a century.

Whether it's the last-chance Texaco or the Sinclair dinosaur winking in the distance, the beckoning Shell, or the winged Mobil horse, it's here in all its small-town glory of compact architecture, inspired promotions, art deco pumps, and endless views of the American horizon.

Author Tim Russell, one of the world's foremost collectors and historians of Petroliana, rolls out the ribbon of highway that takes us to all of those way stations of Americas motoring past.

"What an amazing collection of stories, images, and, of course, beautiful vintage gas stations! Draeger and Speltz  provide gallons of premium detail that make for hours of fun reading and reminiscing." -Brian Butko, co-author of Roadside Attraction: Cool Cafes, Souvenir Stands, Route 66 Relics & Other Road Trip Fun

"Current frustrations over gasoline prices cloud our memory of the central role gasoline has played in the development of Wisconsin. This is a fascinating book, reminding us all of the love affair we've had with the freedom afforded us by the automobile -- all supported by the neighborhood service station." - Ed Jacobsen, Northwoods Petroleum Museum, Three Lakes, Wisconsin

"Draeger and Speltz reliably guide readers back to the auto age in Wisconsin, when travelers found the benefits of community along the way at gas stations. They also advocate for the preservation of these gas stations through which we can visit our common past." -Keith A. Sculle, Illinois Historic Preservation Agency and co-author of The Gas Station in America

Many mechanically impaired individuals such as myself look under the hood of a car and see nothing but the spaghetti of wires, lugs, bolts, belts, and gizmos. The author of this unusual and intriguing novel, which is set at the pump of a gas station, must look at sentences and syntax the same way. Check out the nuts and bolts of his prose: "Turn off the Fellsway up Oak can we make the hill lucky not to burn out motor or transmission four wheels spinning broken chains slapping into the station lot sleep in the garage, rubber-tire beds, fender guards for blankets." If words were wires, I'd hate to see how his car runs. Entirely quirky and entertaining.

"Ed Thomas is the most exciting playwright to come out of Wales" (Guardian) Bron meets Ace six days after his house falls into the sea. Their families may share a past of fairies, angels, axe-murderers and chickens, but what do Bron and Ace need with the past when they've got imagination and a tinted glass blue Marina 1800 TC ready to drive into the heart of Saturday night? Set in a shrinking land, Gas Station Angel is the latest play from Ed Thomas whose previous plays includes House of America (also recently released as a film) and Songs From a Forgotten City.

A Must-Have For Kid and Adult Golden Lovers!! This is a darling book for Golden Retriever lovers of all generations. -- Rochelle Lesser (rochelle@landofpuregold.com) A School Psychologist from Maryland 8/1/00

A charming little book has been published in memory of Golden Retriever Charlie, who "worked" at the Marathon Station -- Shelter Life - Humane Society of Huron Valley

Here's another heart warming local book inspired by a dog. As a reporter, I was fortunate to meet Charlie relatively early in his career, and to write about his job and fans for the Ann Arbor News.

How exciting now to see a colorful book about Charlie! Told in Charlie's voice the book offers beautiful photos -- Anne Valentine Martino - Ann Arbor News 12-13-99

simplicity (s?m•pl?s•´?•t?) birth, intrigue, language, jealousy, passion, lust, romance, sex, anger, love, death, and grabbing a cup of coffee at the corner gas station.

Venture into simplicity. In the pages that follow, there exists a crimson world: The world of Gas Station Coffee. The view is transcending, the dance, a quiet one. The writing is refreshingly new and venturous. Gas Station Coffee is all this and a little more.

The collaborative rich mix of Jessica DeAnne and Marlyn Jacob makes Gas Station Coffee deliciously brewed and warm with just a hint of periwinkle. Gas Station Coffee contains the polished and sometimes turbid poems that make this an original collection.

Through ones busy lives timepieces do not always allow us to reflect or ponder the moments that are witnessed. Jacob and DeAnne reassemble time in non-linear form and allow for views that would otherwise go unseen. In this collection of G.S.C. poetry and prose one may find amid the many flavours

Some do and some don't
Some see; some say
Some are sublime but some of them rhyme
And for one whole chapter they largely evoke

The authors have designed a website for you, the connoisseur. You are invited to stop on by, take a break, chat, leave a message, or catch up on the latest G.S.C. news. Your comments and opinions are always welcome, as poets Jacob and DeAnne continue to bring you freshly brewed poetry that will stir your hearts.

With the advent of the automobile and the central place it took in society, service stations became one of the dominant businesses in twentieth century America. From the pump in front of the general store to the gleaming full-service stations of the 1940s and 1950s, the oil companies created a niche in popular culture. They produced a wealth of items that now are eagerly sought after by collectors. Everything from the glass globes that adorned early gas pumps to toys, advertising, pinbacks, tire repair kits, and a host of other memorabilia are available. Drawing from the collection of Mitch Stenzler, an early and avid aficionado, Gas Station Collectibles offers nearly 1000 color photographs of these nostalgic and often beautiful artifacts. The clear photos show examples of some of the best of the collectibles available, and a price guide is an invaluable aid to the collector.