Grandpa’s Gas Station

“THAT GOOD GULF GASOLINE”

In the late 1930’s, my grandfather, Paul H. Logsdon, operated a Gulf gasoline station in Munfordville, Ky. He was a part of the amazing changing landscape that the invention of the automobile created across America. He was one of many Americans who jumped in, rolled up their sleeves and provided vital resources to the many travelers, business commuters, families, tourists, and motor campers who found freedom in the power of the automobile in the first half of the 20^th century. 

My grandparents in front of their GULF Super Service Station

The store window, featuring my Grandfather's name.

At the advent of the automobile, there were no fueling stations. Gasoline was available as a cleaning solvent at most drugstores and could be purchased there, but it was sold in small quantities and as there wasn’t much demand for it yet, production was fairly low, making it less than affordable. However, automobiles were outrageously expensive at that time, so if you could afford the motor car, you could afford the fuel. 

A very early GULF filling station. This pre-dated my Grandfather's station. This one was located in Pennsylvania. 

Thanks to Henry Ford’s Model T, the motor car became the machine of the people. Therefore, it became necessary to provide services for those people and their machines. Initially the local blacksmith became the local mechanic, and in the 19-teens they began to offer gasoline in bulk. You could drive right up and get your fuel tank filled up straight from the pump! (A novel concept at first!) Eventually, these resting, repairing, and refueling places became known as stations, much like the train station of the previous century, and the lone fortified log cabins of the century before that. A station was a place of safety and refuge for the weary traveler. A place where help could be had, provisions supplied, and preparations made for the next leg of the journey. Eventually, the term “service station” became the norm in households across the US. Though not used exclusively, a “gas station” was a place that just sold fuel. A “service station” was a place where one could find a mechanic who could do basic repairs, and usually sold tires and other parts and fluids needed to keep the motor car on the road. By the late-1920’s, the oil production companies realized that they could get their names out in front of the public and compete for brand loyalty. Branded gasoline was offered at service stations across the country. My grandfather’s first “gasoline station” was a little depression-era general store in Leitchfield, Kentucky that sold some basic refreshments, baskets, some assorted produce, and GULF brand gasoline. It was tiny and looked nothing like what you would expect a gas station to look like today, but it was his and he was proud of it. He operated it via a lease on the property and a contract with GULF.

My Grandfather's first station in Lietchfield, KY was just a general store with two pumps. It was toward the end of the Great Depression, so additional craft items were sold, including baskets, needlework, and souvenirs made from re-purposed materials.

These handsome little butterflies were made of wire, tin foil, worn out stockings, and a little paint. My Great-Great Aunt Bessie (My Grandmother's Aunt) used to make these and sell them in the general store during the Great Depression.

In the 1930’s, the oil companies came up with a plan that would set the stage for the future of chain-operated services that are commonplace today. The plan was to create service stations that were identical across the nation. These bright, clean stations, located on main thoroughfares, were easy to recognize and find. No more repurposed livery stables and blacksmith shops! No more lone fuel pumps at the corner of the feed store or drugstore. Now, travelers were treated to anywhere from two to four fuel pumps, conveniently placed in front of the station on an island. The stations were usually white with brightly colored trim to catch the eye from the road. They featured at least two service bays where just about any work could be done. Inside the store, patrons could find snacks, beverages, oil, maps, and many other road necessities. There were always helpful attendants willing to pump your gas, check your oil, of change a tube in a flash. Unlike previous stations where the contract with the oil company was an afterthought, these stations were purpose-built by the oil company. They would then lease the rights to the franchise to the operator in that town. This sort of “flagship” road oasis was known as a “Super Service Station” and they became the death knell of the “Mom-n-Pop” general store-style stations. Knowing quality service was the key to success, these franchises were offered first to the folks who already had contracts for gasoline. GULF built one of their new Super Service Stations in Munfordville, just up the road from my grandfather’s little store. When they offered him the new franchise, he jumped at the opportunity.

The new GULF Super Service Station sat on Highway 31W in Munfordville, KY, serving customers both local and passing through. In the area before the interstate, all cross-continental travel was done on these two-lane highways.

Grandma sitting in front of the GULF Super Service Station around the eve of WWII.

Grandpa operated this franchise until he was needed for World War Two. My grandmother recalled sitting in that station and hearing the President give a speech on the radio on December 7^th, 1941. She operated it in his absence until the contract expired. GULF refused to renew the contract, citing that they didn’t think a woman should run a service station. After returning from his service in the Signal Corps, my grandfather began work at General Electric along with many other former soldiers, never to return to the service station industry.

A shipment of U.S. Army Jeeps bound for Ft. Knox stops by Grandpa's service station at the beginning of WWII.

In 2017, my uncles and I went seeking the location of the old GULF Super Service Station, along with several other early 20th Century Logsdon family sites, and we found it! It still stands today, but not as the flagship gem of the industry that it once was. 

The little GULF Super Service Station on 31W in Munfordville, KY as it appears today.

It is remarkably small by today’s standards. Time has marched on and now motorists fuel their automobiles at massive convenience stores stocked with everything imaginable and usually featuring more than a dozen pumps, but good luck finding anyone to pump your gas or change your oil.

A promotional matchbook and mechanical pencil from Grandpa's GULF station.

Someday, I intend to make a garage for my antique car projects that is modeled off one of these early service stations. Maybe I’ll paint it in GULF colors!

Back into the swing of things!

Slowly working our way into the early 20th Century...

A little inspiration for kitchens of the '20's. Generally speaking, I dislike architecture of the '20's, however, the kitchens were spot on! Possibly, this period was the apex of the perfect home kitchen.

So, I know it's been a long time since my last blog post... I'm sorry about that. Long story short, I had an accident, shattered my wrist, had a long recovery, and since then, I've been busy with work and trying to get a house ready to move into. There will be more posts about that coming later, as we turn an old house that has had many terrible updates over the last 100+ years, back into a nice place to live!

One of the features of the newly "de-modeled" home will be a 1920's style kitchen with original period appliances! Until then, we are dealing with things like an OPEN CISTERN under the floorboards and a strange LACK of any foundation in one part of the house. Oh joy!

Unsealed, open cistern under the flooring. No, not weird at all!

So, let's take a moment to discuss what I'm going to change about this house... The house was actually built in the 1850's, however, since I don't particularly care to go without indoor plumbing, we're going for a late 1920's "update". Exterior-wise, the cheap asphalt roof will be coming off and will be replaced with a metal roof. Metal roofing was really popular from the turn of the century, until about the 1950's. It is now making a come-back as people are realizing that they are only now, 80-100 years later, actually having to replace those early roofs... The house is mostly solid brick, but it's been covered in aluminum siding. I suspect there's a lot of spalling and other problems with the old brick walls, which is probably why it was covered up. This is more cosmetic than anything, as the walls are about a foot thick, but it probably prevents us from exposing the brickwork. The siding is quite worn and damaged in some areas, so something will have to be done. Maybe we will replace with wood siding. Who knows? The interior is mostly getting gutted. Most of the old plumbing had solid concrete poured around it, so re-working it is a nightmare. Instead, we're going to actually move the kitchen to another room!

So, after stalking Craigslist and inheriting a few pieces of antique furniture from relatives over the past year or two, I have acquired a nice gas stove, (already set up for natural gas, which the house also has) a General Electric Monitor Top refrigerator, (that works great!) a pie safe, and a late-teens/20's hutch cabinet with glass doors. I still intend to find a Hoosier cabinet and a nice enamel-top work table. Also on the hunt for a good farmhouse sink. 

Our lovely "Estate" brand gas stove. It is almost like new! This was a lucky $250 find on Craigslist.

The fascinating thing about early appliances is that they were built like tanks and were very efficient. Remember that 90 years ago, electricity was just coming to rural America. The "grid" was small and fragile. There was no concept of massive, meter-spinning appliances because the power supply couldn't handle that. The entire concept of a refrigerator was a new convenience. Self-defrosting, ice-makers, and cold water dispensers would come along much later when the grid could handle such power-sucking devices. So, yes... You have to unplug the refrigerator every 3 months and defrost it. We've been experimenting in our current (modern) home with this old GE Monitor Top. It is currently being used as a beer-fridge and overflow for birthday cakes, etc. It takes about 24 hours to fully defrost it. That means putting whatever's in the fridge on ice for a day. Not that big of deal, especially if you do it on grocery day when the fridge is almost empty anyway! There's no sitting in front of it with a hair-dryer... Just unplug, stick a dishpan under the condenser, leave the door open, and walk away! As for efficiency, this 1931 GE fridge costs about 1/8th of what it costs to run my 2007 Whirlpool fridge with auto-defrost, even with the ice-maker disconnected!

This is not my fridge, but very similar... This one looks better than mine because I haven't restored the cabinet of mine yet.

I am pretty sure that there will be a lot of other cool projects related to this house, but for now I'm struggling through the necessary renovations in order to start doing the fun stuff! For now I'm enjoying the plethora of late 19th and early 20th Century artifacts that are surfacing as I tear out and replace the original floors. 

Some of the artifacts that have been appearing in the dirt as we work. Early clay marbles, as well as glass ones, glass, abalone, and brass buttons, pieces of very old glass bottles and vases, and lots of pieces of eating utensils.

A bigger picture of the project area. This room will eventually be our early 20th Century kitchen. I have no idea what they thought they were doing with those floor joists! (And if you look to the very back, you can see the top of that open cistern mentioned earlier...) At least I will be very happy knowing that the floor is new, solid, and will last several lifetimes by the time I'm finished! (Not to mention all the new wiring and plumbing! I like the early 20th Century, but not cloth-clad wiring!)

Now, I know you're probably all thinking, "What happened to this blog? It was so cool and all about reenacting, and now it's become a home improvement blog?" No. The next article will be really cool. I promise! I just wanted to give everyone a glimpse at what's going on around here and part of why I haven't posted since April. I've got some great outings planned for this winter and I'll be chronicling them here in the coming months. Summer is "make a living" season... Winter has a lot more play time! However, there will be other house-related articles, but hopefully you'll find them entertaining as well, since it all has to do with the early 20th Century! 

Thanks for reading! 

Early 20th Century on Two Wheels

If you want to have some fun with Early 20th Century motor camping, or just want to cruise around in classic style, one of the most exciting things you can put together is a motorcycle kit! Now, if you've ever priced an antique motorcycle, you've probably had heart palpitations and written it off as ridiculous, since no one wants to mortgage their house for the sake of a hobby!

 1915 Harley Davidson Motorcycle - Priced to sell at "only" $110,000... Umm... Nope!

Fortunately, there are a reasonable handful of plans, kits, and even pre-built replicas available. You can build a decent bike for around $500-$1000 if you have some skills. You can usually find a well-built replica for around $2,000-$4,000. Obviously, the simpler the bike, the cheaper the build.For this reason, I'd recommend building an early bike. As motorcycles are easy to store under cover and were not used as primary family transportation, it was not unusual to see a 20-30 year old bike on the road. So, you can easily use a 19-oughts motorbike for a 1920's or 1930's impression. One of my close friends recently picked up a fairly well-made replica of a 1910 Harley Davidson for a reasonable price. It's built on a cruiser bicycle frame and looks good, though it has a chain drive instead of a belt drive. 

The affordable replica my friend recently acquired. 1910 Harley-Davidson

So, my friend's acquisition was exciting and got me thinking about how to build a kit around a machine like this. First, there are a few adjustments the bike needs. First off, I think it would do well with a rear axle upgrade. The bicycle axle seems light for the abuse it needs to take from the motor drive chain. I think we'll but something heavier on it. Also, it needs a traveling toolkit, and some way to carry a little gear. For starters, we're going to put a small cargo rack on the back fender, however, long-term plan is to build a small sidecar to carry camp gear. That said, we'll have to come up with a very lightweight and simple kit to ride on the bike.
 

Don't take too much gear!! This will be too much weight for the motor, and might unbalance the bike. You won't use half of that junk anyway!

Do remember your toolkit!! A simple leather saddlebag or tube-case with a few basics such as pliers, screwdrivers, and a couple of spare chains and some inner tubes will keep you having fun!

Go for simple set-ups, and lightweight, practical kits. If you go out and find you don't use something you brought along, then kick it out of your kit!

Camp Setups:

Keep it simple... Really simple!

Go to your nearest farm supply store (Orscheln is great!) and buy a canvas grain tarp. Make sure you get one that is actual canvas. These are also oiled for waterproofing. You can use this to both cover your bike, and yourself, without any tentpoles! You'll want a couple of tent stakes, or you can cut wooden stakes at your campsite. Bring a firestarting kit, matches, or lighter and plan on cooking over a fire. Include a skillet, knife, cup, and spoon along with a canteen. (see my earlier blog post for details on how to cook an entire meal including coffee, in nothing more than a skillet!) You can pack a gunny sack and a blanket for sleeping. Fill the gunny sack with leaves or straw to make a pillow.

Oiled grain tarp used to cover bike and rider for the night.

Two bikes used to make a larger set-up. Remember that you don't need a giant coffee cup. You can refill a smaller one over and over and it won't take up as much space.

WWI-era pup tents are also lightweight and simple to set up. Two-part shelters can often be picked up from Civil War or WWI reenactment vendors for pretty cheap.

Clothing:

Early on, motorcycle clothing was about the same as that used for horseback riding. Some of this carried forward, even to today! ( Example: Jodhpurs, chaps, boots, etc) However, it didn't take long for bikers to realize that they needed a little more protection. Leather helmets and jackets were quick to come on the scene, as were goggles. Of course, leather helmets, such as those used by aviators in the period, weren't very strong. They would stop abrasions, but won't keep you from getting a skull fracture. Eventually, the racing industry developed better helmets for race car drivers and these made great motorcycle helmets as well. Of course, 100 years later, we now have far better techniques and materials for helmets, but they don't have the "look"... Or do they? Yes, Amazon has this repro helmet that fits the bill nicely! (and includes goggles!) For a jacket, you may have to scan eBay and Etsy or make one yourself. Butterick has re-released this vintage pattern. I recommend making the jacket in leather, and the jodhpurs in hemp duck with leather saddle, knee, and hip reinforcements. Tall riding boots are another hard thing to find. Watch eBay and Etsy for something appropriate. Don't pay more than $200 for a pair of boots. I've found them before as cheap as $65.

Original riding suit in the Harley-Davidson Museum

Tall boots and jodhpurs are standard among all bikers of the period!

Airman's soft leather helmet and goggles

MUCH safer, modern-built, period-looking replica available on Amazon for about $50.

Shorter motorcycle jacket.

Proper boots. These lace all the way up, but solid top boots, buckle straps, and half-lace boots are appropriate too.

While not very protective, branded sweaters seem to have been very popular in the period.

A great example of a branded sweater, helmet, goggles, tall boots, and jodhpurs with leather reinforcements. This would be a great, and fairly easy kit to replicate.

Of course, you can always dress any way you wish, but what I've outlined above seems to be the most common, the most practical, and the safest.

If you want to have some fun with your impression, consider portraying a police officer! Motorcycles were widely used by law enforcement and this can be a lot of fun at car shows!

Improving cargo space: (the sidecar)

I'm not going to go into a lot of detail here, because we're going to build one for my friend's bike. When we do that, there will probably be a full post about that. In the meantime though, here are some basic ideas...

Sidecars come in every possible shape and style. Some look like boats, or zeppelins, or aeroplanes. It's up to you as far as what it looks like. 

Here are a few exploded images of a basic sidecar design.

I hope this has inspired a few folks! Have fun! Happy motoring! Get out there and do it!!

Here's a few great pictures that I didn't end up using, but need to be admired!

Maple Sugaring, 1920's-Style!

(Thanks to Arick Mittler and Naomi Wilson for sharing their photographs with me!)

This past weekend, a few of the guys (and one gal) decided we should go out and make some maple syrup. Now, "sugaring" is not something you do in a weekend. It takes some time to collect enough sap to make a decent amount of syrup. I put out taps a week ahead of time, but it wasn't really running enough and we didn't collect as much as I would have liked. However, we still had an opportunity to make a little syrup and we certainly had a great time doing it!

 Most of us brought historically appropriate foodstuffs, packaged appropriately for the period. Here I have a wicker picnic basket with my supplies. I used original blue Mason jars with zinc lids for storing dry goods.Since I was motoring in, I wasn't concerned much about weight. Historically though, the break-ability of these jars would have been a concern for motorists. Among the provisions I brought, there is whole bean coffee, onions, apples, butter, medicinal whiskey, Life Saver candies (in the 1935 wrapper, not period to the 20's, but I prefer the fruit flavors over the mint.), and some pancake mix, which was in production from several companies by that time. I also brought a bottle of lemonade and my cold provisions were kept in a refrigerator basket. Those included dry salami, cheese, milk, cream, eggs, venison steak and venison heart. Noteworthy among the provisions brought by others was Drew Ingram, who brought a case of Coca-Cola in glass bottles. I must say, it was a delightful treat with the "medicinal whiskey" on Saturday evening.

 Having the right accouterments makes a difference to the appearance of your camp. Arick Mittler's set-up included some original packaging and an L.L. Bean sleeping bag. The early 20th century is the beginning of the era of mass-marketing and commercial packaging and therefore, having some period commercial packaging in use really brings home the period. Many reproduction labels can be made by printing them off the internet and pasting them to your bottles and packaging. Put a little effort into it and make something good. Also, remember that you don't have to throw your packages away at the end of the weekend. Just use and refill when the next event rolls around!

 Here is an early 20's Maple Syrup label. While our goal was to make syrup (and we did) we wanted to make certain we'd have enough for flapjacks on Sunday morning, so a little commercial product was brought along.

And speaking of commercial products, this is the era of Prohibition! If you didn't want to trust to some clear liquid in a Ball jar that may of may not have dubious origins, your other choice was to get your local doctor to prescribe you some! However, most physicians were concerned about government monitoring, and so would often only prescribe a pint to campers as a remedy for snake-bite. (The concept is that since rattlesnake venom congeals the blood, hard spirits will thin the blood, thereby offsetting the effects of the bite.) Some lucky "patients" were able to get larger prescriptions filled by doctors who were willing to wink and nod. Labels for "legal" booze are easy to find online and can be printed and filled out with your local information.

While a little messy, this was home for myself and Brian Cushing for the weekend. This 10x10 cabin was perfect for two people, and the reproduction kerosene heater warmed it well. (Note, we moved the trunk and set the heater in the center where it had a good three feet of room in each direction at night.) We used kerosene lamps for light, as well as a early 1920's Coleman Quick-Lite gasoline lantern. The lamps light up the cabin nicely, but the Quick-Lite was far superior in the outdoors, though it only lasted an hour or so before it needed to be re-pumped. I'll have to work on that. In addition to our fuel-burning light sources, we also has a patented 1921 flashlight. It worked nicely and was bright enough to see fairly well with.

Among the equipment that proved troublesome, the phonograph was having none of it! We eventually figured out that it had to be as close to perfectly level as possible. In addition, the position of the needle, the arm, the pressure on said arm, and many other factors had a distinct effect on whether or not the record would play and how well... Eventually, we got a few records to play tolerably well and we could actually make out the words. This is an adventure that needs more exploration.

 All day on Saturday, we were boiling what little sap we'd collected. For every meal and ever pot of coffee, we were battling our pot of sap in the way. But then, that was the real purpose for our trip, wasn't it?

It took all day on Saturday, and well into the night, but we boiled down our measly two gallons of maple sap so make just enough of a smidgen of syrup for everyone to have a taste on Sunday morning.

It was delightful and hard-earned, but we accomplished our goal and made a little syrup!

Sunday morning saw us huddled around the campfire waiting for the precious delight of hot flapjacks, jowl bacon, and scrambled eggs and of course, maple syrup! Add a couple of gallons of hot coffee and everyone was very happy!

During our down time, (while we waited for sap to boil into syrup) we spent time honing our skills with firearms of the period. We burned quite a few rounds and cleaned all the rust off of the targets!

 We also spent a lot of time in conversation, discussing period topics at times, and at other times sharing historical references and documentation. I can't say that the conversation stayed on topic all the time, but the spirit of the period showed through anyway.

We also enjoyed some music of the era, from Jake Book's fiddle and banjo, my ukulele, and the phonograph!

And, of course, we spent lots of time eating great food! Saturday's lunch consisted of deer heart, crackers, cheese, and salami. That evening, we had venison steak and onions, pork ribs, and some vegetables. Brian Cushing made some nice bread that we had with nearly every meal! I should also point out that he made an excellent stew for dinner on Friday evening.

 All-in-all, it was a fantastic experiment and we all had a really great time. It encouraged some new folks to get involved and those of us who are a little more experienced were encouraged to step up our game a little more! If you'd like to learn more about the hobby, or find out when we're having our next 20th century camp, visit Early 20th Century Sportsman and Amalgamated Order of Motor Campers on Facebook!

Enjoy! Get out there and do something! Happy camping!