One of the most common commercial building types in the United States is the filling station or gas station. Often located at busy intersections and “hot” corners in downtown business districts, the filling station is a tangible reminder of the early days of vehicular travel, when cars were still new and roads weren’t that great. I was leaving Whitesburg, Kentucky on an overcast day when a small, dejected looking frame structure caught my eye, and I steered my car to the side of the road.
Old filling station, Whitesburg, Kentucky.
I don’t have any evidence that this was a filling station, but it looks like it could have been one – even with plywood barely covering the large hole on the facade left by the display windows. Numerous casement windows, topped with three light transoms, would have allowed plenty of light to flood the main room. It was likely only one single room inside, with an additional room at the rear, under the shed roof. A bench rests outside the front of the building, safely tucked under a small overhang.
A side-gable addition contains one garage bay – and ominously, a small bulldozer was parked in front of the building – never a good sign for a vacant and forgotten structure. I don’t know if this small building still stands – but if anyone out there knows anything about its story, I would love to hear it.
*According to a reader, this was the Ballard Clay Gas Station. Mr. Clay lived adjacent to this building.
