Old Gas Stations, Hotels and Car Hop Pics

Haha that's cool. Friends of mine run the Dixie Twin up here. It's a pretty neat old place. They did finally have to upgrade to digital projection this year though, since film is being discontinued for new movies. I was there last week when they removed the original projector from 1957. Sad day, but at least I got to pick some cool pieces from it. Make sure to support your local drive-in folks!!!

We did the digital conversion last year. While he was going in debt we repainted, installed touchless faucets and hand dryers in the bathrooms, then upgraded some wiring in the concession stand and the NEW projection booth. The old 35MM projector is still there but it sits sad and alone now. It was somber evening when they kicked it on the last time. The owners two year old daughter pushed the button that last time and for the first official time on the digital set up. If everything goes good she'll own the theater when she gets older.

We've been doing a car show there on the Sunday of Labor Day weekend for over a decade now. This year we're showing Hollywood Knights.

Couple old Body Shops

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That one under water is wild.

I remember when gas was always pumped by the attendant . It was a huge deal if you pumped the gas yourself. (I remember my Dad pumping the gas to save 5 cents a gallon)
In the past, filling/gas/service stations in the United States offered a choice between full service and self service. Until the 1970s, full service was the norm, and self-service was rare.

Full service
An attendant (gas jockey) operates the pumps, often wipes the windshield, and sometimes checks the vehicle's oil level and tire pressure, then collects payment (and perhaps a small tip).

Minimum service
An attendant operates the pumps. This is often required due to legislation that prohibits customers from operating the pumps.

Self service
The customer performs all required service. Signs informing the customer of filling procedures and cautions are displayed on each pump. Customers can still enter a store or go to a booth to give payment to a person.

gemnewt wrote:
Is this your kinda girl?

I wonder what she would think if she's still alive and seen this picture?

We used to hang out at this Gulf station on Baum Blvd. in Pittsburgh, I just found out it was the first gas station in the world.. Notice the 57 Chevy with chrome reverse in the lot..

Squirrel Hill Pittsburgh, 1960....

Firestone July 22, 1964 Pittsburgh.

Roup Street and Baum Boulevard in Friendship, looking toward East Liberty and showing local businesses including a Firestone service station, a Sunoco gas station, and Midas Mufflers.

Pittsburgh, Oakland 1964...

J&L Steel, Pittsburgh 1954...

All of these pics have taken me back to a time and places I long for.  My dad's friends, brothers Dick & Joe ran the Cities Service station...I got to ring the bell once when we got there and once before we left.  My grandparents friends had the drive in theater, Put-Put, and go cart track. The A&W was a couple blocks away, and my aunt & uncle ran the A&W in a neighboring town...Oh do I miss ice cold REAL root beer with a BBQ sandwhich.  My dad was in the vending business, and I tagged along with him to most of the old stations in about a 30 mile radius, servicing the candy & cigarette machines...I loved all the unique architecture.  The old Toot-N-Tell drive in...those greasy burgers and fresh fries were some of the best.  I could go on and on. Most of that is around 50 years ago, but I wish I could look forward to any of it tomorrow.

Thank you one and all.

One thing that most kids today will never get to do is walk through a gas or service station, walk over to the capped off air hose that runs across the drive and jump on it to hear the bell ding in the garage. Remember those?

Reb Stew wrote:One thing that most kids today will never get to do is walk through a gas or service station, walk over to the capped off air hose that runs across the drive and jump on it to hear the bell ding in the garage. Remember those?

That was the bell I mentioned. Some Saturdays we'd spend most of the day hanging around (BEEP) & Joe's station. No matter how long we stayed, I was allowed to jump on the hose and ring the bell once on arrival and once before leaving.

Something that irks me is that they took real root beer from us. After being consumed by folks back into antiquity, sassafras is now supposed to be bad for us, and the artificial flavored root beer concoction we get now is supposed to be better.