It’s time for beaver county memories presented by St. Barnabas.  In this segment, we will take a look at the places that did much more than just refill the gas tank on your car.  These were the places that became “hang outs” for hot rodders. The places where all the town gossip was shared, the places where burly men with shiny chrome change counters on their belt checked your oil and cleaned your windshield. The places that seem to have become larger than life over the years as we all reminisce about going there. The places that were known as the corner gas station. 

Just like nowadays, There have always been many choices at the gas pumps. The difference is, instead of just choosing between many grades of gasoline like you’ll find at the convenience store today, pulling up to the island at the old time neighborhood service station meant picking between leaded gasoline, diesel fuel, kerosene and  usually a pump or two with high octane racing fuel. There were no air vending machines, no fragrance dispensers to freshen up after pumping your own gas, and using a credit card meant getting an imprint with a sliding press apparatus equipped with two sided carbon paper and then signing the purple and blue card emblazoned slip afterwards. Service stations of that era almost never had restrooms located inside the facility. If they existed at all, almost without exception, they were located around the side corner along the outside wall, and accessible only from the outside. Usually, one had to ask the attendant for a key first. Very rarely were they clean, and even more scarce was to discover washrooms of that ilk that were heated. These were manly-man places where testosterone, foul language, greasy clothes, pin up posters and calendars with scantily clad women, and the smell of antifreeze was abundant.  

Beaver county had dozens, if not hundreds of corner service and gas stations that would fall into this description. A few of them are highlighted here. In Rochester, The Kugel brothers operated a full service gas station at the corner of Virginia avenue and Deer Lane. Fred, Joe, William and Kenneth Kugel operated a popular Mobile station at that location for over forty years. The classic  Kendall Oil red pegasus sign adorned the building back in the day, which had two service bays and a small customer waiting area framed with picture windows at the corner. The business was sold and the building was converted into a convenience store years ago and one can still fill up the tank with Marathon gasoline at the current location.

Across the river in Monaca, Pat McDonald held court each day at the Amoco service station located on  Ninth street just after crossing the bridge. Pat’s Amoco had the classic, long, gabled front facade with a couple service bays located off to one side that was common with Amoco and Texaco branded gas stations in the sixties and seventies. Like many of those stations, Pat’s Amoco had a singular island in front of the building featuring two or three pumps. Since it was a full service station,  the only reason to get out of the car might have been to check out the tires that would be moved out and proudly displayed upright in little stands in front of the building each day, or to view the various cans of motor oil, stored in canister type rows that were part of a plastic display that would also be put back inside at closing time. Today, an employment agency is housed in the old Pat’s Amoco building in Monaca.

Believe it or not, there are still gear heads rolling around Beaver County, and especially in the Patterson Township area with front license plates proclaiming their allegiance and membership as one of the official “Taylor Bums”. Taylor’s Pennzoil was owned and operated by Bill Taylor. It was located at the top of Ross hill along Darlington Road just outside of downtown  Beaver Falls, and home to a throng of young men known as the “Taylor Bums”. Almost anytime one would drive by, or stop in, many teenage boys and adult men would be loafing at the popular gas station. Most of them were car enthusiasts and the lot was usually adorned with many hot rods of various styles and colors. It wasn’t unusual at all to see a pair of legs sticking out from under said hot rod, as the “Taylor Bums” would be tuning up their rides before heading off for a night of cruising the town, or racing at the drag strip in Ohio. The former Taylor’s Pennzoil has changed hands a few times, but is still an automotive service center where modern cars get high tech repairs, and the car magazines and greasy rags of old have been replaced in the waiting area with an aquarium, children’s games, cable TV, and many other amenities not seen in the “Taylor Bum” era.

In New Brighton, the mecca gathering place and car repair center was Jim’s Texaco, located on 5th street. It is still very popular as the building is now a beer distributor. Back in the day, Jim Young ran a very busy and popular corner service station that had the capacity to service three vehicles at a time from the front of the building and another large side entrance service bay on the back side of the building.  Jim’s Texaco, and later on Sunoco, was famous for selling 105 octane racing gas, along with regular fuels, so it was common to see classic cars with high compression, high horsepower engines filling up there. The place was also famous for hosting outrageous parties with massive food buffets and beverages in the service bays for their customers on Christmas Eve every year. 

(sfx bell ringing) Oh wait, it looks like I’ve got to go, someone has pulled in for a fill up, and that means this edition of Beaver County Memories about service stations has come to a close. Tune in every day for another Beaver County Memory presented by St. Barnabas right here on Beaver County Radio. Transcriptions of this and other archived Beaver County Memories can be found at beaver county radio dot com.