New Game: Old Garage Photo w/your XS

[YamadudeXS650C]

Madison, NY, on Route 20, circa 1935.
G.W. Hinman was known as a scoundrel, daredevil, reckless driver, purveyor of cock fighting, frequent resident of the local jail, and the wealthiest farmer in the area in the 1935's when he sold Cadillacs and Studebakers out of his Hinman Garage. Serviced cars and pumped gas, as well, as you can see in the picture.

 

[Mailman]

That very cool, love the back story. It's also nice they never trashed the building trying to
"modernize" it.

 

[YamadudeXS650C]

That very cool, love the back story. It's also nice they never trashed the building trying to
"modernize" it.

And the wood overhead doors are intact !
I have the same type and color doors in my garage, circa 1989.

 

[gggGary]

A Baraboo "courthouse square" service station, actually a 2fer, both buildings sold gas at one time or another, Fred Kruse (pictured) has been selling and servicing cars here since 1967
Sold my mom a new Olds and replaced an engine in my van one time.

A good friend lived here and ran a tool and die shop out of the building. It was once a gas and service station. it's located on a county road about 2 miles out of Baraboo.

 

[Mailman]

Man you guys are killing it! The history, old photos, the owners of the businesses!

The buildings are nice brick and mortar structures with history you can see.

All I'm finding look like burned out shells compared to yours! Oh well, the search continues!

 

[YamadudeXS650C]

A Baraboo "courthouse square" service station, actually a 2fer, both buildings sold gas at one time or another, Fred Kruse (pictured) has been selling and servicing cars here since 1967
Sold my mom a new Olds and replaced an engine in my van one time.
View attachment 104213 View attachment 104214 View attachment 104215 View attachment 104216

A good friend lived here and ran a tool and die shop out of the building. It was once a gas and service station. it's located on a county road about 2 miles out of Baraboo.
View attachment 104217

O.K. !!
Now, that first picture of yours is worth a million !
A proud business owner acknowledging a vintage motorcycle having a proud owner.
And you've done your background research, to boot.

 

[YamadudeXS650C]

A Baraboo "courthouse square" service station, actually a 2fer, both buildings sold gas at one time or another, Fred Kruse (pictured) has been selling and servicing cars here since 1967
Sold my mom a new Olds and replaced an engine in my van one time.
View attachment 104213 View attachment 104214 View attachment 104215 View attachment 104216

A good friend lived here and ran a tool and die shop out of the building. It was once a gas and service station. it's located on a county road about 2 miles out of Baraboo.
View attachment 104217

Fred has one of those Gold Plated names that we all wish for in our occupations.
Like the harmonica player in the The J. Geils Band: "Magic Dick".
Why couldn't my parents think up a cool name like that?

 

[Mailman]

I did a little sleuthing , I was able to find a post card from the 40's showing Main Street Buckeye in the 1940's. The former service station that is now a U-Haul dealer, was once a Mobilgas station. Mobilgas ran this sign from 1932-1955.

Here was my photo.

Now here is the grainy postcard I found you can clearly ( kinda) see the Mobilgas sign and the three pumps and you can see the shadows of the Art Deco design above the pumps. Old Mobilgas stations were all different in construction but they all had the same red and white color scheme that this has.

I'll tell you something , there just isn't a lot of recorded history in these old Arizona towns. Most of the written history centers around the rugged pioneers and cowboys. Anyways I found a little something! Haha

 

[YamadudeXS650C]

Bobs auto, good name!
Carry on , Bob

Bob,

Yeah, now I seem to be seeing "Bob's" everywhere, like varmint roadkill, and old, sunburned Hyundai's. But, a GREAT name for an establishment, nonetheless !

Today, I was on the road with the FJR to the Catskills (again) and snapped this pic of Bob's Country Store in Roseboom, NY, circa 1840. Yes, thats 1840 it was built and used as a general store. 177 years being run by the same family ! and still pumping gas.

The Post Office has been in the store behind the register all this time, and today.

Get your mail, and some cold beer at the same time !

 

[Mailman]

Now that's just awesome. That establishment is older than most cities in Arizona. I love the one store does it all theme too. That's like Hooterville, where's Sam Drucker? Haha!

 

[YamadudeXS650C]

Strong's Collision Shop, Madison NY, just down the street from Hinman's Garage.
I spoke with the friendly shop owner, Gil, who has run this place since 1951. [edit: No, that date must be the building's origin, he's not that old...] He is proud of his work, and the building. He said that the blocks used to build it were "forged" in a next-door blacksmith shop and that there were gas pumps there just before he took it over.

The roof is tin, and arched, an old tradition in this area. Check out the ceramic insulators for electrical service:

We traded stories about painting cars over the years (he had more stories than I did, of course) and our favorite Binks spray guns.
As I was leaving the building, I got hit with a big blast of acrylic enamel and solvent from a vent. It was asphyxiating, but a pleasant reminder of my bodywork days.
I still have my gun, 60's era.

 

[Mailman]

Yet another good story Dude. And another reminder of the parallels of our lives. When I was working as a welder in a fleet garage I learned paint and body work. I painted just about everything in the companies fleet, from salesmans staff cars to pickups , International bobtail trucks , Peterbuilt semis, even the bosses boats and Cadillacs. And all done with a Binks spray gun.

 

[YamadudeXS650C]

Yet another good story Dude. And another reminder of the parallels of our lives. When I was working as a welder in a fleet garage I learned paint and body work. I painted just about everything in the companies fleet, from salesmans staff cars to pickups , International bobtail trucks , Peterbuilt semis, even the bosses boats and Cadillacs. And all done with a Binks spray gun.

You certainly have "Been there, Done that", Bob.

Speaking of welding, I was in Middleburg sunday, and it was car show day, all over. This guy pulled into the gas station I was in with a vehicle that he welded together using sections of 3 different trucks, and the chassis and engine from a Caddy. And he had some old bikes in the back. I loved it.

 

[Mailman]

Haha, that's great, I love it!

 

[TwoManyXS1Bs]

Man, yew guyz are really scratching up some historical stuff. Great pics.

Lotsa rain down here lately.
Had to wait for the mud and low water crossings to dry up.

This little town of Fredericksburg has its origins in German settlers, starting in the 1840s. Many immigrants were stone cutters, and brought their own rock carving tools. As such, many of the local buildings here were hand hewn limestone, still standing, historic and protected. They can be repurposed, but not altered. Built mostly in the 1800s, there wasn't much call for gas stations. Those came later, either from repurposed structures, or new designs that aren't necessarily protected. Being a tourist trap and retirement village, with very high real estate values and business taxes, you won't find much in the way of profitably operating one-man hobbyist service stations. So, I give you:

An abandoned Sinclair station, 1940s-1960s.

Business opportunity, or money pit. Here's your chance.
I've seen larger bathrooms...

 

[TwoManyXS1Bs]

An old abandoned garage. The older locals remember when it was in operation, long ago.

The Chrysler dealership. Using a repurposed stone home. Closed and abandoned several years ago.

 

[TwoManyXS1Bs]

This station from the '50s-'60s is now a beauty and perfume shop.
Yessir. A fillup of "Ode-de-Cologne".

North of town is the recently remodeled Pecan Grove Sinclair station.

More pics of the interesting stuff at Pecan Grove store, from last year, in my album:

http://www.xs650.com/media/albums/hill-country-ride-march-2016.2828/

 

[TwoManyXS1Bs]

Another tiny, old, discontinued gas station on the east side of town.
The 89 year old owner has his 1945 Farmall up for sale.

The big downtown station. Repurposed as a real estate office.
You can just see the gasoline cart. Pump your own fuel.

Yessir. 2 gallons. Want some acreage with that?

 

[gggGary]

Sweet! you got good stuff there 2M and appears to have been a fine day for sleuthing.

 

[Mailman]

Really nice shots there, great looking old buildings, and I live the vintage cars and tractors hanging around , especially the old black and white patrol car!