My next door neighbor when I was growing up in the 50s and 60s owned a Flying A station I remember it so well Hid daughter and I used to walk down to the station and bring him his lunch in his spotless office. Everyone there wore the green uniforms and caps with the Flying A logo
Burning Bridges was performed by The Mike Curb Congregation in 1971/1972 and I have always liked that song. They did an early music video featuring that song well before music vids came out big time in the later 70's. Strange thing about that song is that it sounds like it should be a happy song but is actually a guy singing about his downers. You tube has the song and the "music video" with lyrics.
"12 Gallons for a Dollar." At the rate things are going now it'll be 12 Dollars for a Gallon before much longer. I don't care what anyone says, videos like this remind me of a simpler time when this was just a better place to call home. I feel for the kids of today, I really do. Then again, I'm sure there was some old codger saying the same thing about me and my buddies back in the day. As the old song goes, time waits for no one.
Was a gas jockey in 1969, we had to check oil, radiator water, battery water, wash windows, check brake fluid when asked and tire pressure all while pumping gas. The owner said you never know when you can sell a quart of oil. The cheats would short stick the dipstick to show a quart low and then add oil from an empty can. Restick again pushing the dipstick all the way showing the customer it was full. Gates belts had a promotion where they would have a car with a really bad belt. If you found it while checking under the hood you got $50.00 cash. Regular was $ 0.37 a gallon.
Most stations did this back in the day. We called it TBA sales. Tires, Batteries, and Accessories. Allowed you to check for possible sales without appearing too nosey and it did do a service for the customer as well. Unfortunately there was a lot of abuse also. One was actually wearing rings with a sharp edge on it to make a cut in a radiator hose so a few miles down the road it blew. This was more common at highway stations where 50 miles between them was very common. Worked 2 places where I didn't PUSH enough "expected sales" and was out the door. LA, early 60s to 70s.
Worked in a Shell station after school back in 1969 and 1970, until I graduated from High School. This was a very busy station where we were required to give full service for all gasoline sales no matter how small a purchase. Sometimes I'd be out pumping gas for hours at a time, non-stop, we were that busy. The owner didn't pay much, but the experience was priceless.
The old cars were dependent on maintainance. There was a grease fitting for just about everything that moved. It wasn't unusual to find at least 10 to 15 grease fittings under the car. You didn't just go down to the parts store to get new set of brake shoes, the repairman would actually rivet new linings onto your old shoes there at the repair shop. This was a major PITA and the asbestos in the linings flew everywhere. Tubes were in all of the tires and if you weren't careful, you'd either pinch a new hole in the tube or find that the air valve had slipped out of the hole in the wheel. You either had to repair the new puncture that you created all over again or pull the tire off of the wheel's bead to relocate that slipped air valve. Without the air valve being in the hole in the wheel, you obviously couldn't get air into the tire. The brand name ESSO stood for Eastern States Standard Oil. This video really brought back some memories, thanks.
My Grandfather owned a gas station in Leonard, Texas that was nothing more than a shack (no floor), one light bulb and one pump. My Father grew up in this Station prior and during the Great Depression.
An absolutely mandatory reminder of what we had, and lost, with the invention of planned obsolescence and disposable commodities. Oh well, too late now...✌😔
@@garymorris1856 thats cool i almost met nixon he live in my area , but not meet anyone important in poltices . Eisenhower was he like lookin important,, i saw Reagan and Bush in a park once doing campain speech, police they stopped all traffic going near the park
Sure do miss the days when service stations actually provided service, and not just a bunch of snack junk. That said...the maintenance required on modern vehicles (like my 2015 Challenger w/392 Hemi) is hardy anything, compared to my first car (66' Plymouth Valiant). Thanks for posting!! 👍
I noticed in the Thumbnail, there were 4 50gallon hot water tanks mounted up on the wall close to the ceiling. My question is why would a service station need so much hot water? I mean I understand the meaning behind * FULL SERVICE STAION* but a shower while you wait for your auto to be serviced, now that is a full service gas station!....The theme song to The Great Escape was perfect for this video.
I know there was ARCO because there was a service station on Hough and Lake in Barrington directly across from the Canteen Restaurant. Now was there a company known as ENCO? Just curious. BTW I used to see ENCO hopper cars on an EJ&E freight train when I was a kid.
Earl Scheib painted any car any color for that much when I was a kid in the 60's. It had to be true as I saw it on TV. Along with The Partridge Family.
@ Christopher Wyller The Partridge Family first aired from 1970 to 1974. Maybe you were watching Ginger and Mary Ann on Gilligan's Island in the 1960's. My dad got his 1958 Oldsmobile Fiesta station wagon painted at Earl Scheib in the mid 1960's.
My next door neighbor when I was growing up in the 50s and 60s owned a Flying A station I remember it so well Hid daughter and I used to walk down to the station and bring him his lunch in his spotless office. Everyone there wore the green uniforms and caps with the Flying A logo
Many of these old service stations are beautiful.
Burning Bridges one of my favorite songs, I worked at a Gulf gas stations in 67-68 in Gladewater Texas good years!
Kelly's Heros!
Burning Bridges was performed by The Mike Curb Congregation in 1971/1972 and I have always liked that song. They did an early music video featuring that song well before music vids came out big time in the later 70's. Strange thing about that song is that it sounds like it should be a happy song but is actually a guy singing about his downers. You tube has the song and the "music video" with lyrics.
Great time to be alive compared to a world of today!!!
I wish those days were back.
Me and you both Craig Anthony
I remember parts stores with people that knew about cars, nowadays it just kids and computers
Was easier when cars had only 12 parts to the engine
I like old gas stations, I do paintings of old gas stations with old cars , street rods
I love the old service stations and gas stations especially the ones that I used to see when I was a little boy
"12 Gallons for a Dollar." At the rate things are going now it'll be 12 Dollars for a Gallon before much longer. I don't care what anyone says, videos like this remind me of a simpler time when this was just a better place to call home. I feel for the kids of today, I really do. Then again, I'm sure there was some old codger saying the same thing about me and my buddies back in the day. As the old song goes, time waits for no one.
6:18, back then even service bays had style. Amazing!
A fond remembrance of service stations of the past.
Happy Motoring! ⛽
That's very cool! That's when they used to full service your car, and you didn't even have to get out of the car! Service with a smile.😎👍
Very cool video. Thumbs Up Liked !
Was a gas jockey in 1969, we had to check oil, radiator water, battery water, wash windows, check brake fluid when asked and tire pressure all while pumping gas. The owner said you never know when you can sell a quart of oil.
The cheats would short stick the dipstick to show a quart low and then add oil from an empty can. Restick again pushing the dipstick all the way showing the customer it was full.
Gates belts had a promotion where they would have a car with a really bad belt. If you found it while checking under the hood you got $50.00 cash.
Regular was $ 0.37 a gallon.
They used to do that at Clark gas stations here back in those days
Most stations did this back in the day. We called it TBA sales. Tires, Batteries, and Accessories. Allowed you to check for possible sales without appearing too nosey and it did do a service for the customer as well. Unfortunately there was a lot of abuse also. One was actually wearing rings with a sharp edge on it to make a cut in a radiator hose so a few miles down the road it blew. This was more common at highway stations where 50 miles between them was very common. Worked 2 places where I didn't PUSH enough "expected sales" and was out the door. LA, early 60s to 70s.
I bet Chicago had a lot there
Worked in a Shell station after school back in 1969 and 1970, until I graduated from High School. This was a very busy station where we were required to give full service for all gasoline sales no matter how small a purchase. Sometimes I'd be out pumping gas for hours at a time, non-stop, we were that busy. The owner didn't pay much, but the experience was priceless.
The old cars were dependent on maintainance. There was a grease fitting for just about everything that moved. It wasn't unusual to find at least 10 to 15 grease fittings under the car. You didn't just go down to the parts store to get new set of brake shoes, the repairman would actually rivet new linings onto your old shoes there at the repair shop. This was a major PITA and the asbestos in the linings flew everywhere. Tubes were in all of the tires and if you weren't careful, you'd either pinch a new hole in the tube or find that the air valve had slipped out of the hole in the wheel. You either had to repair the new puncture that you created all over again or pull the tire off of the wheel's bead to relocate that slipped air valve. Without the air valve being in the hole in the wheel, you obviously couldn't get air into the tire. The brand name ESSO stood for Eastern States Standard Oil. This video really brought back some memories, thanks.
Thanks for explaining all that.
My Grandfather owned a gas station in Leonard, Texas that was nothing more than a shack (no floor), one light bulb and one pump. My Father grew up in this Station prior and during the Great Depression.
An absolutely mandatory reminder of what we had, and lost, with the invention of planned obsolescence and disposable commodities. Oh well, too late now...✌😔
Wish I could go back in time knowing what I know now! And live the rest of my life in that time. I would be so rich and so happy !
yes and meet Elvis and keneddy
@@onlythewise1 I met Dwight Eisenhower.
@@garymorris1856 wow cool my dad did on the iowa battleship when they took him to another country or was that another president .
@@onlythewise1 I met former president Eisenhower at his museum in Abiline, Kansas in 1966, I was 15.
@@garymorris1856 thats cool i almost met nixon he live in my area , but not meet anyone important in poltices . Eisenhower was he like lookin important,, i saw Reagan and Bush in a park once doing campain speech, police they stopped all traffic going near the park
My grand father was owner operator of service station on long island ny
20’ 30’s
Thank you for memory kicker
Mine too.
More appropriately "SERVICE STATIONS", with the emphasis on 'service'!
Sure do miss the days when service stations actually provided service, and not just a bunch of snack junk. That said...the maintenance required on modern vehicles (like my 2015 Challenger w/392 Hemi) is hardy anything, compared to my first car (66' Plymouth Valiant). Thanks for posting!! 👍
That Burning Bridges song goes back in the old memory banks quite a ways! Golly Gee Wizz Batman!
8 gallons for a dollar! And now it's $8 dollars for one gallon here in California 👺
I remember filling my tank for $5. Seat belt? What ‘s that? One for the road?
Thanks for video!!
Keep them rolling!
I took my kids to old timey gas ⛽ stations 🚉 years ago.
At 1:17 a genuine Shelby GT350 (or at least a lookalike). Sweet.
I wonder how many of these people made the mandatory $15/hour?
Nice and clean days no graffiti or trash...what happened people?
I like looking at the service stations and gas stations and service station signs along with it when I was a little boy
Burning Bridges sung by The Mike Curb Congregation will always make me think of Kelly's Heroes.
the other song is The Great Escape music
@@harrybriscoe7948 By Elmer Bernstein
Thanks for this video - very nice!!!
Electric car charging stations hold nothing to these service stations!
My check engine light came on sir!
very cool...well done
I noticed in the Thumbnail, there were 4 50gallon hot water tanks mounted up on the wall close to the ceiling. My question is why would a service station need so much hot water? I mean I understand the meaning behind * FULL SERVICE STAION* but a shower while you wait for your auto to be serviced, now that is a full service gas station!....The theme song to The Great Escape was perfect for this video.
Fill it up with Ethyl ?
I know there was ARCO because there was a service station on Hough and Lake in Barrington directly across from the Canteen Restaurant. Now was there a company known as ENCO? Just curious. BTW I used to see ENCO hopper cars on an EJ&E freight train when I was a kid.
Grew up in Roselle. Had friends on Cuba road
And now we visit these places to get $3.40 cts. a gallon gas, and no service but you can buy fried chicken 🐔 ! Crazy Bob's is the best ! 😋
Go back?! How 'bout we just put back!!! stuff that was high quality and otherwise made good sense!!
>> Best photo I've ever seen from the 1930s. :0 >> 1:41
1.42 What a way to sell gasoline!
Yeah, that image caught my eye as well.
Classic American service.
1:46 Really? Wow...
whitewall tires inner tube --transistor radio 3 bucks
:32 $29.95 to paint your car ,,, wow
sanding swirls, runs and dust ball's were free
Earl Scheib painted any car any color for that much when I was a kid in the 60's. It had to be true as I saw it on TV. Along with The Partridge Family.
@ Christopher Wyller The Partridge Family first aired from 1970 to 1974. Maybe you were watching Ginger and Mary Ann on Gilligan's Island in the 1960's.
My dad got his 1958 Oldsmobile Fiesta station wagon painted at Earl Scheib in the mid 1960's.
fill it with petroleum distillate and re vulcanize my tires, post haste!!!
Title reads 20's through 50's.......... the Mustang and Chevy's in the picture at the 1:12 mark must have gone back in time...................
Gary Vale That photo was probably taken sometime in the early '70s, judging by the Mustang and the Mercedes behind it
1:12 random GT350....
30 bucks for a car
Auto Painting $29.00
Hummm , the girl at 145
That was rather interesting wasn't it? I'm surprised that photo wasn't x-rated in those days.
@@rickj1983 I guess back then people didn't think that way , or people did and it was no big deal ... maybe
Hate the music. of the 70s
The time frame is 20 to 50s why not some music from the time ?