Aeroplane Filling Station - Powell, TN

Dating back to the glory days of roadside architecture is this vintage gas station eye-catchingly shaped like a plane built by proprietors Elmer and Henry Nickle in 1930. (Here's a photo from 1931.) Powell is located north of Knoxville along US25W on the road to Clinton, TN. The gas station went out of business half a century ago and was abandoned for a while. Other businesses moved in to keep it open, such as a liquor store, a produce stand, a bait & tackle shop and finally a used car lot.

About a decade ago, locals who wanted to preserve their roadside heritage from demolition began to rally to save the plane. They created a website (now gone, I think) and sold t-shirts to raise money for the novelty architecture preservation. One thing that caught me by surprise during my visit is the exterior has shiny new sheet metal compared to other recent photos I had seen online. Also new are the windows and the light along the wing. The building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is also helped by the Tennessee Historic Commission

The Station - Pure Art - McMinnville, TN

In McMinnville, TN, an old Pure Oil Gas Station just a couple of blocks from the county courthouse has been preserved and converted into some kind of art place.

Fernvale Shell

For many years, highway TN96 ran through the tiny community of Fernvale, TN in Williamson County. When traffic was routed onto a more modern highway, the station here was soon abandoned.

Over the years, some friends and I would use this building, which used to be very run-down, as a landmark for driving directions to get to a cabin. the instructions would say "Turn left at the abandoned gas station."

Then, about 15 years ago, someone bought the place, fixed it up, and turned it into a small country market. It must have been short-lived as now it looks like a private residence.

Rocket Express Quality Fuel sign - Celina, TN

This old gas station sign is seen along Lake St. (which is a major road in town and probably used to be TN53). Sadly, they look to be out of business now

Springfield Used Cars - Old Gas Station

Looks like a really really old gas station that was converted into a used car lot. Along Main St. (old U.S. 41 and 431) south of the town square in Springfield, TN. Has hand-painted slogans all around the front. (see my notes for what they say.)

UPDATE: I believe this old gas station has now been torn down. It did look like it was in bad shape back in 2008.

Ralph's Automotive - Hohenwald, TN

This classic Gas Station architecture is now home to a service station. The car in the photo is apparently a 1956 Nomad.

Stuckey's

For someone like me who likes to wax poetic about all sorts of vintage nostalgia from a bygone tourist era, here's one diminishing thing that luckily is still around.

Stuckey's started off in Georgia by Mr. Stuckey, a Pecan farmer. During the golden age of Automobile tourism, the franchise grew to about 350 blue-roofed convenience stores mostly throughout the southeast. They were best known for their souvenirs and their candies, starting with the pecan log roll.

If you're driving on I-24 from Nashville to Chattanooga, this Stuckey's is located at the last exit (US64/TN50) before the trip up the mountain to Monteagle. All the way from about Manchester to this exit, you'll see about a dozen really old decrepit billboards for the Stuckeys, advertising the pecans, ice cream, hot dogs and novelties. At least the large billboard in their parking lot is still in one piece.

If you are a fan of Nashville's own Goo Goo Clusters and King Leo made by the Standard Candy Co., they also own the Stuckey's Candy Co. (However, each store is independently owned.)

Faded Coca-Cola roof ad - Frankewing, TN

Here's something very easy to miss! As I travel the back roads and keep my eyes peeled for faded advertising barns, more often than not when I see patterns of rust on a metal roof, my brain plays a trick on me and tells me there were some letters there. On this occasion, my circling back around was worthwhile as there really was something there in the rust.

At some point, this must have been a gas station or market. along the top of the roof, barely visible is "G.H. STEVENSON" so it must have been his store. Then, the Large Coca-Cola logo appears below that.

This is along the old Highway. US 64 runs from Memphis to Chattanooga going through many of the main cities along the bottom of the state. Many stretches of US64, including through this area have a newer two lane divided highway bypass the older stretch. This is along an unsigned old stetch of US 64 (or TN 15) approaching Frankewing, TN from the west. This tiny town is about halfway between Pulaski and Fayetteville.

Vintage Cowan, TN Texaco

the local vinatge gas station has been preserved and now is used as a museum and tourist welcome center. This station is located near the important transportation intersection of highway US 41A before the ascent to Sewanee and the CSX train line before it begins its ascent to the Cumberland Mtn Tunnel.

The station still has three gas pumps, one for sky cheif and 2 for fire chief. In the service station, the museum has a 1936 Ford and a 1950 Ford.

Cowan has also preserved one of it's old fire engines that still gets the job when the call comes in.

Vintage Cowan, TN Texaco

the local vinatge gas station has been preserved and now is used as a museum, library and tourist welcome center. This station is located near the important transportation intersection of highway US 41A before the ascent to Sewanee and the CSX train line before it begins its ascent to the Cumberland Mtn Tunnel.

The station still has three gas pumps, one for sky cheif and 2 for fire chief. In the service station, the museum has a 1936 Ford and a 1950 Ford

Cowan has also preserved one of it's old fire engines that still gets the job when the call comes in.