September 4th, 2009 @ 12:09 am by Cliffe | Sorted Photo Exposure
And from the “I did not know that” area comes this… Seattle may be well known for some rather regrettable things: ie Flannel, etc. But maybe it’s a
good thing we’re not known for having built the
first gas station in the world in 1907. Although, Wikipedia contests this fact and puts us in the second position with
St Louis in number one. Foiled by Missouri again! Click for the super high res (only if your name is not Bertolet).
 |
| Visitors to ‘A World of Oil,’ inspect a three-dimensional, life-sized diorama of the world’s first service station, built in 1907. ‘A World of Oil,’ an educational museum which tells the story of the oil industry, will open to the public Monday, February 7, at the new Standard Oil building at 555 Market Street. The first gas station in the world, which was located in Seattle. Photo by Jon Brenneis. Image courtesy Washington State Digital Archives. |
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September 4th, 2009 @ 12:14 am
So life-like!
September 4th, 2009 @ 2:43 pm
Over recent decades several local publications have referred to the now-gone gas station at, I believe, the SW corner of Eastlake Avenue E. and E. Hamlin Street, as Seattle’s — and America’s — first “full service” gas station. Seems it was razed in the 1980s or so…
September 4th, 2009 @ 2:47 pm
Of course I could have considered checking HistoryLink.org before responding!
David Wilma wrote about this topic there:
http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&file_id=2093
September 4th, 2009 @ 3:16 pm
Holgate and Western, eh? The two do not cross in 2009. Would what was then Western now be Utah Avenue S., Colorado Avenue S., or E. Marginal Way S.?
September 4th, 2009 @ 10:08 pm
Hmm! Perhaps “Western” is actually “Whatcom,” which is apparently the old name of E. Marginal Way. And there’s the Standard Oil dock right there. Map: http://bit.ly/1AhS1j
September 5th, 2009 @ 11:11 am
Here’s a story about when the Eastlake & Hamlin station closed. Dated 1993.
http://community.seattletimes.nwsource.com/archive/?date=19930329&slug=1693039
Here’s a blog post from earlier this year about the last station still to be branded Standard in the state of Washington. I have heard about this place, but never seen it, and was afraid it had finally become a Chevron, but it looks like it was still there as of February.
http://thesledgehammer.wordpress.com/2009/02/18/a-not-so-standard-chevron-station/)
September 8th, 2009 @ 3:31 pm
If you are along the waterfront at Terminal 30, last year when it was still a “cruise ship” pier there were 5 entry gates. Between Gates 3 and 4 found the Plaque refered to in the History Link article honoring the “world’s first gas station”
It reads, ” Site of the
WORLD”S FIRST SERVICE STATION
Here in the spring of 1907 an odd but
Ingenious contraption was erected by
the late John McLean of Standard Oil
Company of California for the unprecedented
Function of dispensing gasoline and oil
Directly to the motorist
From this significant pioneer effort came
one of the greatest conveniences to the
public - The Service Station
Erected by
STANDARD OIL COMPANY OF CALIFORNIA
June 5, 1947″
I would post the photo but am not sure how…
it is rather impresively embedded in concrete….
September 11th, 2009 @ 12:37 am
You could always upload the photo to Flickr and post its URL.
So I guess it is “Holgate & Whatcom,” after all.
September 29th, 2009 @ 5:44 pm
This photo from UW Digital Collections shows the site around 1905–
http://content.lib.washington.edu/cdm4/item_viewer.php?CISOROOT=/curtis&CISOPTR=196&CISOBOX=1&REC=4
The filling can would have been on the dock in the front left, as corroborated by this 1905 Sanborn map of the area (I’ve added color updates to assist in finding the location).
http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/fDjFCFh7JE_age8hkz4ehQ?authkey=Gv1sRgCK761Z-PhYCnag&feat=directlink
September 29th, 2009 @ 5:48 pm
And the plaque looked like this until it was recently spray-painted orange.
http://www.jetcityorange.com/Seattle/Worlds-First-Gas-Station.html
Thanks to SeattleGreg for providing info that allowed me to find the plaque today…it sits on a tall cement block alongside the road just south of the Port of Seattle Police Station.