Things No Longer Found at Gas Stations
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- Опубліковано 29 кві 2023
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There was an elderly man at my local small town gas station who pumped people's gas well into the 1990s. He was old and suffered a brain injury at some point in his life, so he wouldn't remember he wasn't expected to do it anymore. He would overfill once in a while and leave streaks on the windshields, and a few people would complain, but most of us just let him spend his day the way he wanted, mistakes and all. He was super a nice guy. Whenever I had cat footprints on my car, which was often, he'd say, "Uh oh, victims!!" 🤣
Now the gas station and the man are both gone. RIP, Willy. I'll see you again someday. ♥
Thats sweet ❤😢
Except for being nice sounds like Joe Biden 😄😂
What a sweet story! Thanks for sharing.
@@slim-oneslim8014 More like trump and his airports during the War of 1812.
@@slim-oneslim8014 Another MAGA Maggot!
My Dad was a gas station attendant, RIP, we lived very comfortably in a small house, he always provided for us, my Mom was amazing with money. In 2010 I was 50, I was in a rehab, one of the guys told a story of pulling into a gas station but he was broke, needing to get to a job interview he told the attendant his situation, he said the guy filled his tank and said pay me back and good luck on your interview, he got the job and a couple weeks later went back to pay the guy, that guy's name was Frank, my father, he died in 1999 at 62, I'm so proud of my Dad. Thank you. 🙏
My dad worked in a service station , pumping gas , tire pressure , flat repair , tune ups etc , on that wage he and mom were able to purchase a home , take us on vacation every summer , give us kids (3) a wonderful Christmas , birthdays , never went hungry , we were happy . It was an honorable job , no one thought less ! My dad was a good man !!
In south Texas we called them "filling stations." Every teenage boy got his first job at the local filling stations. Every time we pulled up to the pump, teen attendants cleaned our mirrors and windshields, checked the fluids and tire pressures, and topped them off if needed. My dad often tipped them a few coins. There was always a public phone booth in the corner, and cold soda machines.
We didn't know how good we had it! life is just not the same with all the trouble we have now we had trouble back then but not like today.
@NVMVNV leave it to a real racist like u to bring up color and racism you sorry pos maybeif u pull your pants up and get off welfare u might succeed
Yeah, sometimes I'd like to go back to these days and visit.
@NVMVNV They would have applied to me so I'd like to visit.
@NVMVNV I know but I would if I could since it was a better time.
@NVMVNV There were a lot of good things back in those days.
My dad had a Gulf gas station we worked together for 45 years alot of good memories thank you for this video it really brought tears to my eyes I only wish dad was still here too see it he passed at 91 years old and had worked with Gulf oil since he was 16 years old ❤
My Dad owned a rural Gulf Station, too.
My dad was a Refinery Manager for Gulf in the 70s. He made gasoline, your dad's sold it. That was a good company.
Do you remember when Gulf gave away orange plastic horseshoes to attach to your bumper, the Gulf globe to stick on your antenna, and the gold colored political pins with horseshoes? It was a fun time.
@@garyjohnson6640 my dad delivered fuel for Pure oil/Union 76 stations. I remember those 76 balls on the antenna too. Those antennas are gone now too.
Our grandfather and Dad owned and ran a Gulf full-service for decades. It only got shut down because of the oil crisis in 1971 😢.
This video really hit home on all cylinders. Three blocks from our house a WWII vet ran a tiny service station, but due to his injuries from the war he was forced to wear a big brace from his knee to his ankle and it was difficult for him to walk. Everybody that came by for gasoline (including my grandfather who was also a vet form the WWII) pumped their own gas and came in to pay him. He stocked ice cream, candy, and all sorts of soda, so my friends and i always went there after school and hung out with him buying a lot of snacks. Later in life i found out he was a decorated vet from the war, a big guy who we all know was a great American. The service station allowed him to serve our community once again and for us in turn to say thank you Big John your loved here.
*you're loved
you + are = you're
your = possessive (think "our")
@@mousermind Oh shut up
Thanks. This was a piece of Americana that is now gone.
Sadly, yes that was a time in history that many of us remember all to well. And how I miss those days. And I wish that I could have been able to show my kids and grandchildren how it was back in the day.
This was coming to an end when I was a little girl in the early ‘80s, but I do remember it. People used to be catered to back in the day… milk deliveries, house calls from doctors, people pumping your gas for you…. These days you’re lucky if they’re even nice to you.
Another nostalgic video that almost makes me want to cry.
I remember all of those things when I was a kid. I even remember the smell. The gas stations also had free air pumps installed on the building. My sister and I would ride our bikes to the gas station to fill our tires and to buy candy and soda. America was so great back then. I wish we had those days back again than what we have now.
I loved riding over the hose to ring the bell. Now I realize we must have drove the attendants CRAZY.🤭🤭
Do you remember the gas attendants checking your oil and washing your windows?
I remember when pink was for girls, and blue was for boys, and boys couldn't magically change into girls, and vice versa, they still can't, but some belive otherwise. We call these people "progs", kinda like "trogs" but dumber.
I miss drive in theaters and those drive in restaurants, like A&W, where they'd put the tray on the car door. And real milkshakes. Businesses took their time to make quality products. I miss quality.
That smell was so intoxicating to me, I actually liked it. (still do today) Both my father and older brother are/were experienced car and motorcycle mechanics, so that smell always lingered on them. Plus, I would help polish chrome as a child on my brother's chopper. I had a green Sinclair dinosaur bank. The 60s was a fun time to be a child (and a teen in the 70s) :)
Ahhh. The sound of the bell as you pulled up to the gas station. What a great audible memory.
Not only, the familiar, "ding-ding" as you pulled in but, the pumps use to emit a ding at every roll of a gallon too.
@@outterlimits1 That's right! I remember those! Also the air pump would ding after each pound of pressure.
@@outterlimits1 I just miss, the REAL times, when boys, were REALLY boys, and girls were REALLY girls, and there was no confusion, or mental illness, when it came to using public bathroom.
@@mordechai- I just miss, the REAL times, when boys, were REALLY boys, and girls were REALLY girls, and there was no confusion, or mental illness, when it came to using public bathroom.
@@saminaneen Haha, my father had those thoughts in the sixties when he saw hippies ☮️✌️
Look at the people in the old photos, they looked genuinely happy.
As a kid back in the late 50's, I use to love watching the colored balls located towards the top of the pump in a clear casing moving around as gas was being pumped. Who else remembers this?
I thought they were cars going in circles
@@kennethmcdonald5278 At least at the local Gulf station where my dad use to get his gas, I saw that they were clearly balls glass casing. It is very possible that what you said is true. I guess it would depend on the particular brand of gas whether you would see balls or cars.
We had these on our pumps here in Australia as late as the 80s when leaded fuel was still being used.
Yes , I Remember those colored rotating balls , showing that gas is flowing in the tank and hose
I worked in a "service station" from the time I was 16-23. It was a life changing experience. I learned work ethics, customer service and eventually a trade. My boss owned the business. He was a role model, a mentor, a patient teacher and a father figure for me. Sad that era is over.
Very similar situation. The boss and his wife (owners) took a chance on a longhaired fresh out of high school kid and gave me a start at a career. Pumping gas and cleaning up around the place to engine rebuilds and front-end alignments in a rather short period of time because I watched, learned and pretty much kept my mouth shut. Thank you John & Hazel, your wisdom will stay with me forever!
My boss treated me like he was my dad. A little preaching from time to time. But every month or so when I could come in early, he was there with his buddies, a bit tooted up, and off to Rockin' Chair Helen's they'd go. The stories they told when they got back taught me all about the birds & the bees.
I could have written your comment myself. I worked at a gas station from 15 to 19 years old and had the same experiences as you. Looking back, it was a great time in my life.
let me guess... it starts to end since after the Gas Shortage of 1973.
@@okamijubei yup, the first fake gas shortage. The second was in 1979
Who remembers this old jingle: “You can trust your car to the man who wears the star, the big, bright Texaco star.”
"You expect more from Standard. And you get it."
“Put a tiger in your tank,” Esso fuel.
@@cogman62 DId you have a tiger tail on your gastank door? :)
@@outterlimits1 no, but I saw a few of those.
Goodness! I can hear it in my mind's ear! 🎶🎵
People laugh, but those days were the best of times! What I wouldn't give to turn back time......😢
I don’t think anyone likes today where 6 dollars a gallon is now the standard for gas
@@slapshotjack9806 WELL ONE THING, GAS ISN'T THAT HIGH!
@@leewomack3498 look around it’s all over the place
Become Amish and live in their community. Problem solved.
@@kevinfinnerty8414No thanks, they’re pretty big on puppy mills.
My husband worked at a gas station from 2010 to about 2012 and it was a smaller local gas station that had been there for as long as I could remember and he would make such good money in tips because he would always offer to check peoples fluids and he would clean their windows for them. A lot of the customers were regulars and they got to know him and really liked him because they would say he was part of a lost art and they so appreciated him.
I must be getting really old (70), I remember everything in this video. Well done!
I was reading an article about some 69 year old guy complaining about something. I thought, yeah, you old geezer. Then I realized I was older than him.
The 60's and 70's were the best of times for me in California as my buddies and I went to the beach, the mountains, lakes, camped a lot, and enjoyed good weather. My dad bought Dick Smothers slightly damaged Travco motorhome where he backed into a concrete filled pipe protecting a fire hydrant in San Francisco. I was 14 years old, good with my hands, and I repaired the damaged fiberglass areas. I rough ground it wearing swimming trunks on a hot day and was smart enough to wear a respirator. The fibers got into my skin and I was miserable for a week.
At 70 years, you probably bought gas at that time, I did. I remember paying 28.9 at the Gulf Station on Valley Blvd. Best prices in town.
What a great recollection. Times were good Brother
I was in the military stationed in Massachusetts in 1972. The Arab oil embargo was in effect so you could only buy gas every other day. I had a brand new 1972 Ford Pinto and if it was completely empty it would cost me $2.80 to fill it up. Gas was 28 cents a gallon and my base pay was $288 a month
@@jbolf6 Coincidence upon coincidence; I too had a 1972 Ford Pinto 4 speed I picked up @ Bob Wondries Ford in Alhambra, CA. Great little car, loved it to death. But the 1st time I took it in for service the dealership told me it had a British Ford engine in it and the ca. 1972 shop had NO METRIC TOOLS. I had to wait an extra day while they secured some. Oddly enough, I thought nothing of it at the time...
When I was a child, my parents would go to Fletcher's Marathon or the Amoco station around town. Dad would always try to balance out the station usage based on the date due of the credit card bill. I thought it was one of the best things ever when mom or dad allowed me to tell the attendant to "Fill er up unleaded!"
One of my first jobs when I turned 16 was as a pump jockey back in 1976. In 1980 I was a pump jockey again for a truck stop. Met my future wife there.
My dad was a big US history buff so we traveled every summer and I loved it. Thanx for this video. Brings back many fond memories stopping for gas. I had forgotten how it was indeed fun for us kids at the gas station. They all had those old bottled soda machines and we usually got one when we'd stop.
I'm 62 and love this channel!
Oh, also those round oil cans required an oil spout that would puncture the can which was always messy.
As a kid, I was fascinated by the glass globes on top of the pumps, which were illuminated at night.
Gulf station. I sorta thought those were testicles.
@@mikezylstra7514 grrr
60s child, eh?
s i g h
@@cfneal1459 50's
That was my second job when I was a kid. Had to wash the windshield, check the oil, and of course fill the tank. You had to hustle and give the customer the quickest service. I absolutely loved it!!!
Today kids don't even work.
@@peekaboots01 I just miss, the REAL times, when boys, were REALLY boys, and girls were REALLY girls, and there was no confusion, or mental illness, when it came to using public bathroom.
That's the kind of service that no longer exists today. It can make buying gas very difficult for people like me who are elderly. I miss that kind of service.
@@jaysotherwife6007
In Oregon people are not allowed to pump their own gas…
My mother had both green stamps and blue chip stamps-I think we once got a table lamp with one or the other of them.
The local Union 76 station in our very small town used to give out free orange styrofoam balls, about the size of a tennis ball, every so often with Union 76 painted on them. We'd put one on top of the outside radio antenna so we could spot our car in a parking lot with thousands of cars (such as DisneyLand or other amusement parks) - worked every time! The Gulf station across the street from the Union 76 station (yes, we actually had TWO gas stations in our very small town, if you can believe it!) would give out cheap-glass drinking glasses, one with each fill-up, until you got all 6. I believe my 87 y.o. mother still has one hidden way back in one of her kitchen cabinets!
Yes I loved them little balls we took some from cars and using some slats tried to rig up a makeshift ping pong game out of em
Steak knives too!
@@wfukfm I'm staring at one on my desk as I write this. Most of the later Union Oil stations had the ball on a pole as signage. Some stations would turn them into Jack-o-lanterns in the Fall.
I'm in Canada but we had Gulf balls too...
@@wfukfm And that is why, you are in prison, typing this, because you are serving time for felony theft.
It was always so impressive how throughly and quickly the attendant could clean your front window.
That was the good, old, times. Thanks for bringing it back.
Can you imagine what would happen if we had such a wonderful service station to go to today
No, I can't imagine. Tell me. I'd really like to hear it.
@@mordechai-first they would get robbed also someone will trash the restrooms they would always be trying to hire because people are so rude they can keep any one good you know the rest
@@vandangoadventures570 Unfortunately, you are right. As late as the 1980s there were still a respectable number of stations open 24 hours, especially along the interstates, but that's getting to be a rarity these days, so driving straight through all night can be a problem in some areas if you need gas and nothing is open.
@@vandangoadventures570 Sigh. Unfortunately, you're right.
Most People who work at Gas Stations today wouldn’t dress in fancy uniforms nor do a full car service. If they were to bring it back most of them would expect 20 dollar tips and most people would only give them five or ten dollars as tips. Plus they would have that anti-ghetto attitude. Which most Americans having grown a custom to with a reverse attitude to the individual gas attendant.
It would only be available in fancy upscale neighborhoods or where a bunch of rich people are living.
I remember the gifts my parents got with a fill-up, like a set of steak knives, or a set of colored tumblers. I loved to go with my parents to the gas station, because it meant I got a Nehi grape soda and a Moon Pie. I grew up in the South in the 50s so full service stations hold a special place in my heart.
And the Tiger Tail you'd get to hang from the tank door!
True that. Lots of steak knives. I still have some from the 1950s.
Yes and I preferred the blue chip stamps over the green stamps. Even though we collect both. Blue chip because the gifts were better.
I remember dad collecting the music cassettes at Sunoco. They had a different cassette for each decade.
When you said 'Moon Pie' I sort of knew you were from the south. That seems to be a mostly-southern thing. Grape Nehi... heh. That stuff was pure gold. I remember they had a lot of flavors - Orange, Strawberry, and some others, but grape was always my favorite. In a glass bottle, of course, and so cold it actually hurt to hold it in your hand.
Just the thing on those summer Iowa days.
Those of us who were there, are very blessed. People who weren't there can never even imagine how great this country was. I want to go back with every molecule of my being.
The woke leftist mob has turned the country into a nightmare.
Take off the rose colored glasses.
@@williamwilson6499He's right though.
I do not really. I well remember polio, with wards full of iron lungs. Learning to take shelter under the school desk in case of a nuclear attack. "Whites Only" signs everywhere, even when they were largely ignored. But burning cities. Blind acceptance of government claims and close government management of wartime news until Viet Nam, the "television war", when Cronkite blew their cover by saying the war was lost. How many did you know who died for nothing. Lead paint everywhere. Schools full of asbestos. DDT that nearly killed off every avian raptor. Solid steering columns that speared the driver in a crash, or sharply pointed metal dash board place exactly right to shatter knees in the absence of seat belts. Virtually no chance of surviving cancer. Routine police torture. Little response to child abuse. Almost zero response to child sexual abuse. Food conventions that set many of us up for early death and disease.
It's easy to feel nostalgic, but the price is to high.
As nice as it was for some, it was pretty terrible for others.
My grandfather ran a Gulf station, and I grew up in it. It's sad because the customer service skills I picked up there have no place in a modern shop. Old school service stations wanted you as a customer, and would give you deals, or help you out. We used to just give away signal light bulbs. If a car came in for gas, we'd check the lights. If a signal light was out, we'd replace it for free. It was only a $0.10 bulb, but it was free, and that's all the customer saw. One free light bulb = 1 customer for life.
These days, shops don't want your loyalty, they want your money. I have been suspended from work because I help my customers instead of taking them for everything I can...
ya... the death of the service station was the death of customer service.. :(
I’m almost 65, and I love all your vids. Fond memories- never to be again. 😢
Growing up in Kansas we called these "filling stations". I still love the aroma that came with these buildings. I loved going there with daddy....
Ahh filling stations almost forgot that one
When we lived in Southern California, they had dairy stations, sort of like a gas station but instead of gas pumps there were refrigerator containers that held dairy products and eggs. There was even the hose that would ding when you rolled over it.
This is a vague memory as we moved north when I was young
The gas station near our home gave away a drinking glass with each fill up. My mom hounded my dad to fill up until she completed her set of eight. Sweet memories.
I was born in1964 and remember most of these things. It's a real shame how things have changed. Thank you!!
I was born in 60 and remember all of it. My family owned a service station too. Those were the days! All the cousins had a job when ever they wanted one. Miss these stations.
@@LoveVanillaRose Me too!
I was born in 65. Wow things have changed. Grateful I was born when I was.
I was born in '62. I remember it all, except the snazzy uniforms that gas station attendants wore in the '50's. But they still wore at least a jacket and a cap in the late '60's and early '70's. Sometimes you see that now.
@@anniereddj I just miss, the REAL times, when boys, were REALLY boys, and girls were REALLY girls, and there was no confusion, or mental illness, when it came to using public bathroom.
Wow! I'm 72 and this really brought back some memories! My father was an auto insurance adjuster for General Motors Insurance Company. He handled a territory of about 25% of the state of Virginia. He got a new company car every year, and the glove compartment was always FULL of road maps from gas stations. Before GPS, the way you navigated was by road map, with periodic stops at gas stations to ask directions, especially when you got close to your destination. As for snacks, I can remember buying a pack of "Nabs" (Nabisco cheese and peanut butter crackers) and a Coke. Standard fare! The old Coke machines had bottles suspended by the rings at the top of the neck of the bottles, suspended in ice-cold chilled water. You made your drink choice, slid the bottle down the railing holding the drink you wanted, and put it into the dispensing mechanism. Then you inserted a dime into the machine, and it allowed you to lift your single bottle from the dispenser. Wow! Thanks!
Thank you Ashley Marie for solving a mystery for me! Years ago I was reading some article about environmentalism and some environmentalist was quoted as saying he didn't have time for meals so he was living on "Nabs" while he was trying to save the world. I could not figure out what he was talking about! The word kind of stuck with me and I even remember searching for it in the early days of Google and coming up empty. Now you have explained it! Google still doesn't seem to know about "Nabs" but if you search for "eating Nabs" you get some hits that explain what they are and the history of them going back to 1924. Thanks! Vince...
We’ve always called the crackers nabs and we just recently had a family funeral where family came and my mom and aunt were discussing this topic and neither of them knew why we called them nabs…I’ve lived in Australia wit my family and up north and in both places if you mentioned nabs you would get a funny look.
@@jakeman025 Interesting! Thanks!
When I was 14 I worked in one of the last old time full service stations, this was back in 1993. Our customers really did appreciate the extra mile we would go. On weekends, we would have lineups for our carwash where we pre-washed the vehicle before running it through the machine.
Sad this era is over. We are left with nostalgia.
If you are a "boomer", you lived your childhood through the greatest time
America (or ANY country for that matter) has ever experienced, and probably
ever will. The younger generations have NO IDEA what we have lost, and
how FAR America has fallen.
Ahhh the Good old days . Now if your Car breaks down , you have to get it towed to a Car Dealer , or Automotive Repair Shop , where you will be Ripped off and gouged to Death . It is like a a completely different Planet .
@@user-zh9st7dl4h I recently experienced it during my trip to New York.
Honestly I would rather just fill my own gas tank. Such a useless service, I'm sure you were paying extra for this service that is essentially pointless. I don't need my oil checked every single time I stopped for gas, such a waste of time.
@@arjaysmithjr9083 Greatest generations you mean when lynchings and outright racism were a regular thing?
I do remember these gas stations back when I was a little kid. And back then diesel was cheaper than regular gas. Also you used to be able to pickup a road map for your travels. I miss those days now more than ever before 🤔
Me too,Frank.i never imagined that getting gasoline would be such an impersonal experience.
@@paulburick1506 I just miss, the REAL times, when boys, were REALLY boys, and girls were REALLY girls, and there was no confusion, or mental illness, when it came to using public bathroom.
@@saminaneen exactly, it IS a mental illness.
"Put a Tiger in your Tank!" was a promotion I remember in the UK for Esso Extra; millions of foot-long plush tiger tails were given away, and were a common sight in the 60's sticking out of the gas tank flap.
We had it in America too.
"Tigeri i Tankki" in Sweden back in the 60's.
We had them also in Australia
This video was very well produced.
I worked at my uncle's gas station from age twelve to fifteen (60s). As I recall you've covered everything that made these places memorable. Thanks!
I was born in the 90’s so I never got to experience any of this, but I wish I did…back when people took pride in their work and things were made in America with quality. Where people cared about other people and had strong morals, values and respect. Times were simpler. Todays America has so much culture rot, it’s really sad.
it is actually disgusting that society is like is is
Blame capitalism and the associated greed for sending so many jobs overseas.
Don't worry though, Communism will win in the end 😎👉👉
I worked in several different gas stations between 1965 and 1976, it was just like you said, thanks for the memories.
These days if you do not check the right society boxes no one will hire you. I know this as a 39 year old who has been permanently frozen out of the work place.
I remember when many stations offered full service back in the 1980s. I also remember that full service slowly went away in the 1990s when many stations went self service only, and converted a lot of their garages into food marts.
We still have full service here in Costa Rica, oil, water and gas checked.
We still have a full/self serv gas station in town. Each side has about a thirty cent price differential though.
New Jersey has a law that all gas stations have top be full service. They also have gas that's cheaper than the gas in New York.
@@GeorgieB1965 I just miss, the REAL times, when boys, were REALLY boys, and girls were REALLY girls, and there was no confusion, or mental illness, when it came to using public bathroom.
Yes, but some background. The dealers' margins on gasoline were only 3¢ a gallon, out of which the dealer had to pay station rent, salaries, supplies, and on. The money was in the services bays, where the corporate serfdom was less fervent. Full service was expensive... so we all learned how to pump our own.
I remember the "Gas Wars" that went on at the time. Two stations would get together and start lowering the prices until one could no longer lower them. Prices could go down to around a dime a gallon before it was over.
There was a full-service station in Austin, TX that was still around in the 1990s that I would go to. As a young mom, it was a lifesaver because I didn’t have to leave my babies in the car while I pumped gas. After I had a knee and foot injury not too long ago, I was really missing that station!😅
Those restrooms on the outside of the station were usually kept locked and you had to get the key from inside. It would be attached to a piece of broom handle or other large object so you would not loose it.
A hub cap.
@@johnp139 a leaf spring.
And it was the pre-COVID years, of course.
And the rest rooms 85% of the time were spotless
I worked cleaning Starbucks in downtown Seattle '03-'04. Even then they closed the restrooms to the public (in at least one location) because of drugs and prostitution.
This channel makes me feel so old-but I love it! I had a soap shaped like the Sinclair dinosaur on my dresser when I was a kid. I also remember when Esso became Exxon.
I just turned 60. Where did the time go? Today, it's harder to tell between men and women with the transgender craze going on.
@@stephendacey8761 oh stop. they are people too. and they also existed back then. for 60 years old you sure need to grow up still
Here in Canada, we still have Esso, but Texaco has been gone for a long time now. I, too, remember when they used to be called “Service Stations”, and almost all of them had a service bay.
You need to eat less of those Scooby snacks, they're messing with your sense of reality.
You're exactly right. The evil Left is intent on depriving people of the ability and inherent right to be able to distinguish between both moral as well as factual right and wrong. They literally don't want us to be able to distinguish between fact and fiction, and between reality and individual fantasy. And by so doing, they will be better able to convince us to believe all their other lies, and keep sliding inexorably into their trap of worldwide tyranny.
Tyranny is the ONLY endgame for every single thing the evil Left is pushing.
I remember as a young child going with my dad to the gas station. after pulling in going over the hose, bell rings, it turns the car off and it seems like we were there forever. I love it how it is nowadays in and out let’s go.
A few of my friends had gas station jobs in the mid 1970s. I’d go and hang out and they’d sit in the office while I pumped
Gas, checked oil and cleaned windshields.
The last gas station I knew that was the neighborhood gas and service station was Parwood Sunoco in Paramus NJ. They were around until about 5 years ago. Richie fixed the cars, Phil and Paul pumped the gas. Phil in the morning, Paul in the afternoon. Richie’s son-in-law was also a mechanic and fixed cars. His daughter ran the office .
It was the last “Old Time” Service Station around and lasted into the late 2010’s when Richie retired. There’s apartments and stores where it was now 😭.
Great people giving great service!!!!!
My Dad had his own gas station in Boonton, NJ. It’s how he met my Mother back in the 1950’s.
Filled her up and here you are.. 😉
Where was it? I'm from Parsippany
I worked at a BP mini-serve gas station during the late 70s and early 80s. When I asked my manager what mini-serve meant, he looked around to see if anybody could hear then told me: "Don't do anything extra unless a customer asks you; just pump gas and get the money."
Yeah, he was the oy-vey small-hat variety or an arab, sadly. White people went out of their way to help you. Jews and Arabs are like whatever.
During the gas shortage, I had to do that myself. Very long lines and there was the odd/even plate days we had to be aware of.
@@paulbegley1464 great memory! I too lived thru that era.
I really miss those days. Also, outside of meeting your friends at your local burger joint we would sometimes meet at our local gas station. What I really enjoyed was how you would walk in while waiting, and you would see the older timers mulling about talking about the days news, and playing cards.
There is one more thing I miss most of all were the barbershops. Dad would take me there on a Saturday morning, everyone knew each other, and the majority of the time everyone would stop by, have a seat, and chat. The radio would be on, and of course small arguments might ensue but for the most part everyone got along, and the barbershop always had such a great atmosphere.
I still remember when we had gas stations even in the 1990s that were service stations and they would wash your windows for you while you pumped gas. Now they all seem to be just convenient stores now.
My folks got a whole set of dishes back in the late ‘60s from our local Richfield (one of the predecessor of ARCO) station. My mom still had the whole set intact when she died almost 60 years later. If you filled up at a 76 station down the street, you could get a bright orange and blue Union 76 ball to put on the top of your car’s radio antenna. Fun memories!
I remember those balls. They were so cute!😊
Still have 1
I remember those "tenna-toppers". I asked my Dad to get me one so I could put it on the antenna of my portable am/fm radio!
@@Stephanie-vn6ir I just miss, the REAL times, when boys, were REALLY boys, and girls were REALLY girls, and there was no confusion, or mental illness, when it came to using public bathroom.
@@lindacostello1162 I just miss, the REAL times, when boys, were REALLY boys, and girls were REALLY girls, and there was no confusion, or mental illness, when it came to using public bathroom.
Great video! A MAJOR lost piece of Americana, service stations were taken for granted. We thought they would always be there.
Where do you ask for directions now? Who checks your oil and water? The road is not the same anymore.
I ask Siri! 😂
@@ms.b9093 Jiffy Lube for the oil.
Answer ! Your I Phone !! lol I would check , Oil , Water , Battery and wash windshield too Most customers would tip me a Quarter or 50 cents TOO : ) What a WONDERFUL time to Live through : )
i have not watched this channel in a while, it is so nice to go back to a much more simple time in life. the narrator is perfect for this as well
I am old enough to remember all of these. Thanks for the drive along memory lane.
And they say we've progressed. No, no, we haven't.
Always enjoyed going to the service station when I was a kid, especially in my old home town. Phillips 66 was the station we would stop at, even when we went back to visit my grandma. Loved the old soda pop and candy machines we would see there. Give me a bottle of 7-Up and a Clark bar and I was a very happy camper. My grandma would always go to a full service station with gas pump attendants and would always ask for ethyl, even well after that term was not really used. And they used to have giveaways, too, beyond trading stamps. My family had a full set of Chicago Bears juice/whiskey glasses they got from filling up at a local gas station (Shell in Rockford, I think).
A Coke in a glass bottle a Hershey bar and an individual bag of potato chips all for 20 cents. Just make sure you brought the bottle back
I remember in the mid-sixties, the station attendants kept very busy spot checking and cleaning your car when you came in for a fill-up. They addressed my mother as "ma'am". As a little kid in the front seat, and not able to see the hood of the car, the attendant would carefully hand wash, dry and polish each square inch of the front glass with blue paper towels, even to the extreme edges - not a streak anywhere!!!
Love this. I was born in 1970 and there were still many Service Stations where they pumped your gas, cleaned your window, checked the oil. I remember the cans of oil on display racks, the gumball machines, the mechanics yelling for this or that - it was a whole experience. LOL, my first credit card was a Chevron Card - LOL.
Good memories. My mom never pumped gas and I recall always going with her when I was young to the full service pumps were she would see the regular attendant and get taken care of. I also recall collecting S&H green stamps and exchanging them for all kinds of stuff. Today things are very different and people need to pay a machine in advance and pump your own for 6 or 7 times the cost.
My grandfather ran his own gas station from the 50s to the mid 80s. I have wonderful memories of going there as a kid. He had an old coke machine similar to the one shown in this video. He wore a uniform everyday and he and my great uncle worked on cars as well. For a while he sold Flying A gas and I remember being given a Axelrod bank. For those of you who may not know, Axelrod was a Bassett hound and the Flying A mascot. I'm now 59 years old and I still have that bank on my dresser in my bedroom.
Remember free maps?
You could bring your bicycle to a service station and they would fix flats for free.
In 1972 when I was 11 y/o my dad and I were on a road trip in our 1964 Thunderbird when a bolt holding the adjustment for the power steering broke. The car lost all power assist. We pulled into a small town "Service station" and the mechanic jumped right on it. He had to drain the coolant and remove that hot radiator in triple digit heat so that he could extract the broken bolt and replace it. It took many hours in part because he had to keep stopping and filling people's tanks.
When he got done, he charged my dad $6.40. Yes, that was super cheap even back then.
My first job in high school was as a part-time pump jockey at my neighborhood Gulf Station. I'd walk there after school every day and worked a few hours on Saturdays. We had two full-service bays. The spending money was great. I still miss real service stations.
I remember most of those things as well as seeing beach balls strung outside in the summertime and remember getting at least one. Also, in the late 1960s one station gave out small presidents figurines to collect (I still have the two we got). Loved to watch the uniformed attendant expertly clean the front windshield and back window and check the oil.
When I was fresh out of high school in 1995 my first job was working as an attendant at a Glider Oil gas station. I had the big wad of cash for making change and I filled cars and trucks with gas. We would only check the vehicles fluids if specifically asked but I would usually wash the windows while the gas was pumping. I got pretty good at juggling filling 4 vehicles by myself all at the same time for different amounts. Some wanted a fill up, some wanted $20 worth, or $10 or $15. I had to keep track of which was which and bounce back and forth between them so none of them waited very long.
Made good money in tips too, especially around Christmas.
I worked at a BP station in early seventies. Have lots of memories of times gone by. I am 70 years old.
Fond memories from late 80s. Every Saturday after my cartoons my dad and I pulling into a 76 station with the giant rotating ball sign for a tank of gas and full service detail. I looked forward to my rocky road candy bar.
When I was a kid in the sixties my buddies & I would ride our bikes over the hose to make the bell ring. It usually didn't take long for the attendant to chase us off. Great memories!!! 👍👍🙂
As kids, we used to ride our bikes to the service station and pump air in our bike tires, as the valves were the same size as car tire valves were. Also went inside and got free maps. At the time, as kids, we didn't think about doing these things and not make any purchases, but threw owners never threw us out either, thankfully.
My grandfather had a Mobil station.. the flying red horse and it looked just like the one in this video... brought back so many memories and he was full-service... he and two of my uncles...his son's worked there. My family would drive there every week and hang out. He had one of those huge ice chests full of coke in glass bottles and there was an opener on the side of the chest. Great memories...
One of my first jobs was working at a Texaco... I'd pump gas, clean windshields, check wipers, oil level and tire pressure, coolant level.... and this was the 80's...nowadays I don't think many people would know how to check these things
I very fondly remember all of these things. Thank you for bringing these memories back to me!! Have a nice week!
I remember the cool gas truck toys (Hess) that I would play with! And you usually trusted your favorite mechanic!
Those metal Hess, and other toy truck models are still around. I've seen them for sale in recent years at truckstops. You probably can find them online as well.
I worked at a Standard Gas Station in 1977 Minot, N.Dakota. Not quite 21 yrs old, so it was a really cool job with lots of 'perks'. Drove my 1970 Plymouth Roadrunner to work everyday. Still, today in 2023, I have a '69 Plymouth Roadrunner.
Yes. I remember those days. Take your pick between girl friend and muscle car. Couldn't afford both.
@@timclemann2318 Guess which one I chose....Mopars
Well I chose girl friend who became my wife for 50 years. She let me buy a 2015 Mustang GT. I sure love those 69 Roadrunners.
@@timclemann2318 Most importantly...you found her....
I remember at some gas stations they would give away drinking glasses with fill up. Good times
I was born in 1979 and most of this had already faded by the time I was a child.
This video brings back fond memories of my days as a service station attendant in the 90's. I worked at Hess and remember checking people's oil etc. There's a station near my house now that still pumps your gas for you, and the old timer that works there will even check your oil if you ask nicely 😂
el hombre bilingue • My Father-in-law (r.i.p.) used to buy the latest Hess toy truck for my sons at Christmas. We still have a nice collection to remember him by.
That reminds me of moving to Fresno I. 1972. I worked at a Chevron station right off the freeway. We had to check the oil and air filter, air the tires, and wash all the windows with a squeegee. That was the worst because the bugs were very thick on the windshield. I wondered how they could drive with it so thick. Kind of like driving in the tulle fog that was so bad, you had to drive 25 miles per hour on the freeway and still be afraid you might hit someone in front of you.
There was a Shell station in my neighborhood. My folks would always go there. Art, the owner, would always whistle while he pumped gas, checked the oil, and cleaned the windshield. Like others have said, we would go there and use the air pump for our bike tires. They had the non-digital gas pumps with the rotating dials. This channel sure brings back memories. Thanks for the trip back in time.
I really like these kind of videos they bring back so many memories. I don’t know is it just me, but I have noticed in the past like in the 1950s public streets were so much cleaner back then. In today’s world everything looks so dirty even the people.😢
Decades of keeping infrastructure on the back burner.
Very good video. My dad worked for Gulf, in an office downtown, so we bought Gulf gas for decades. I worked there in high school and college. This video covered so many interesting elements of Service Stations. Just as in the video we (I) treated every customer, car, truck, motorcycle as though they were special. Check under the hood, add water to the radiator and distilled water to the battery, check the oil, fan belts and hoses plus air the tires and wipe all of the windows. Never try to push a sale, honesty was expected. I did plenty of tire repair, rotating and balancing, oil changes, brake jobs, car washes, vacuuming, etc. I wore a Gulf shirt, but no cap. I also had to sweep the station inside and out plus clean the bathrooms. But . . . The family that ran the station had several Shelby Mustangs, which I got to drive occasionally 😊😊 One was a 66 GT350H 🤩
So many if those service station guys were friendly and personable. Once in a blue moon, you'd get a lazy guy or sour puss who dogged it and took forever to come out to the pump! Dad, a Marine Gunnery Sergeant then, would give them a piece of his mind and they hopped to it. He got a job working in an AMERICAN (Standard) gas station after he retired from the Marine Corps. My siblings and I would stop by the station to get change (50 cents a piece) from him for the admission to the community pool that was close by. Great memories!
Where I grew up, every station seemed to have a dog. They varied widely in temperament, but were usually German Shepherds. The DX station in town had a lovable, lazy lump named Butch who was always begging for snacks, while the Standard station had a rather sullen German Shepherd named Rocky, who us kids were warned not to disturb.
The one full service station (Heinze's, which eventually turned into RPC Motors) in the small midwestern town I grew up in didnt have a dog...but they did have a bear. A real, live black bear. In a cage, right next to the garage portion of the station. That's nuts. I remember her name was Molly. I wonder whatever happened to her...I should ask my folks if they know.
They also had a 'nudie calendar' on the wall behind the cash register, in full view. I always felt something akin to embarrassment standing at the register while my mom or dad paid for bait because of that damn calendar. There was a guy named Dan who worked there who let me stick my hand in the minnow tank. Don't ask me why I liked to do that as a kid, I have no clue. Good memories lol
My father was a Service Station Attendant for the first 6 years of my life. He was getting paid $1/hour when I was born. I remember those old gas stations, and all the customer services they offered. Many of these stations had a soda machine out front, and a candy/gum machine inside. They sold oil, brake fluid, coolant, and some auto parts...no restaurants, or beer, of lattes:). I also rememebr S&H Green stamps and other trinkets that we collected (Presidential Coins) when we filled up.
I used to Love seeing the guys who pumped our gas when I was a kid. They seemed like family.
At one station it was family. My dad worked at a station.
There still are service stations around but very few.
Your right they did seem like family I miss that
@@glennso47
In my case it was my uncle.
😊
@@dane-my1qo I just miss, the REAL times, when boys, were REALLY boys, and girls were REALLY girls, and there was no confusion, or mental illness, when it came to using public bathroom.
I grew up in the 70s and there was still gas stations where they served you while you sat in the car, and while the gas was pumping they asked you if you wanted them to check the air in your tires and your windshield wiper fluid. And of course they had the little bucket next to the pump with a squeegee in it and they cleaned your windshield while you were waiting. And I remember thinking it was exciting when they switched over to self service and you actually got to pump the gas yourself, and my parents used to let me hold the handle myself and then put the gas cap back on, and I thought it was just the most thrilling thing in the whole world.
Yup!!
Last time I saw one was 1983 or 1984 at a 76 station. I think they were phased out by 1985. Sad day.
In my city of 6 million people, I know of one gas station that still employs an attendant who pumps your gas while you sit in your vehicle and you pay him at the pump. Unfortunately, he doesn't do windshields, oil checks or tire checks.
@@LoveVanillaRose I just miss, the REAL times, when boys, were REALLY boys, and girls were REALLY girls, and there was no confusion, or mental illness, when it came to using public bathroom.
@@puppylove3781 we still have one here in Tennessee but it's old and the original owner has long since passed and his son runs it but sure it will be gone before much longer
One local gas station in my town had extensions that permitted the gas hose to cross a sidewalk. These were common in Europe but I never saw another in the US.
I worked in a family dealership that meant I had to do gas duty. Fill up, check oil and radiator, clean windows and send a happy motorist on their way. It was fun and the money could be good.
The world has changed and sadly, so have so many people.
I love the feelings of nostalgia these videos bring! Thank you for sharing!
STILL HAVE AN OLD SCHOOL GAS STATION IN TOWN. THEY STILL PUMP GAS AS WELL. 😎🎸
I remember the "gas price wars" that would go on between competing stations. Just about every major intersection had one on each corner, and they would entice people with free placemats, coffee mugs and other freebies in addition to cutting the price per gallon. Sinclair, Gulf, Mobile and Texaco stations all had attendants who would check fluids, tires, and wash the windshield.
I remember a grand opening of a gas station around 1963-64 in KC Mo that gave away free gas for 24 hours before grand opening to get the people’s attention.
The last full service station I can recall in my area was an original Hess operation at 9th and Sarah in Stroudsburg, PA. It became self-serve before it ceased operations fairly recently. Local kids would place an order across the street at J's Steaks and Subs, and gas up the car at Hess while they waited. Many a weekend kicked off that way! Now off to the roller rink and to cruise Main St!
I worked as a gas jockey years ago in a little town. We pumped the gas, checked the oil, and cleaned the windshield. The owner's son did mechanic and tire work in the bay. At Christmas time, they would get in all kinds of special items so that people could do their Christmas shopping right there at the service station.
Grew up with a kid whose dad owned the last full-service "filling station" in my small Missouri hometown (a Phillips 66 station.) He kept it full-service up until he retired and sold the building, well into the 2000s.
Great visit down memory lane!
I worked in a service station because not only gas, we did repair vehicles. Most of your memories are correct. I graduated from service station work in 1976. Yes I was a pump jockey or grease monkey for a few years. Brings back fond memories.
No, you pretty much nailed it. Being born in 1961 I remember it well and even worked at a couple of them and witnessed the end of them
Brought back memories. I was also a time when kids could ride a bike up to the gas station without helmets, knee pads, elbow pads and chest protector.
I had more iron-on knee patches on my levis, than you could shake a stick at.
We used to pump our bicycle tyres up at the gas station for free...now you're not allowed to,even though you have to pay to use the air pump! Must be too dangerous....you'll put too much air in the bike tyre & it will blow in your face and injure or kill you!🙄🙄😂😂
Where I live the kid still ride bikes without helmets of any of that gear. It's safe for them to ride around by themselves.
I recall free collectable glasses given at each visit along with the trading stamps.
I like the way they presented themselves with how smartly they were dressed,they took pride in there job and the way they looked. What a difference time can make in not just the type of job that's rarely found now,but the way people are and behave. Oh,the good ole days.
Can’t blame em, back then you could make a decent living doing that.
I remember when nothing was open on Sunday. Then, when gas stations opened on Sunday, then restaurants opened too. Finally everything opened on Sunday.
Oh what great memories, I remember our gas station attendant was an ol man named Roscoe Braden, I was only about 12 years old in 58. It was a Texaco station right next to the greyhound bus station. I used to run back and forth, talking to Roscoe and seeing the buses pull in. Those were the days my friend, we thought they'd never end, we'd sing and dance the day away.
We'd live the life we choose, we'd fight and never lose! Those were the days! Oh, yes those were the days