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Man Moved Antique Gas Station To His Home
Russ Darnell is an avid collector of gas station antiques. So when he learned that a local 1920's gas station was about to be torn down, he got permission to move it 20 miles to his home near Hutchinson, Minn.
He put the building on dolly wheels, and pulled it home with a 1-ton, 4-WD pickup.
"There was mo
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Man Moved Antique Gas Station To His Home AG WORLD 27-6-21 Russ Darnell is an avid collector of gas station antiques. So when he learned that a local 1920's gas station was about to be torn down, he got permission to move it 20 miles to his home near Hutchinson, Minn.
He put the building on dolly wheels, and pulled it home with a 1-ton, 4-WD pickup.
"There was more to the moving job than I thought there would be. But I'm glad I did it," says Darnell, who has gathered gas station memorabilia from all over the country.
The tiny gas station was one of the first of its kind. It consists of a 12 by 20-ft. stucco house with a 22-ft. high roof.
The original structure opened as a Standard Oil gas station in the 1920's. In the 1940's, it was called Eastside Oil. Most recently, the tall and narrow building had been painted yellow with bright pink trim and was used as a take-out fried chicken shack. When Darnell got the building, the outdoor gas pumps had long since been removed.
It took a full year of dealing with red tape before he was able to get permission to move the structure.
It took him two years to restore the station to what it looks like today. During the renovation process, he found hidden treasures in the attic such as old newspapers, checks made out to Eastside Oil from the 1940's, and a metal sign which had never been taken out of its box. That sign now hangs over the door and is the only original decoration amidst many other gas station antiques.
Outside, he installed a pair of Sinclair gas pumps - ones from a later era, around 1934. "The original gas pumps were called ævisibles' because you the level of gas through glass panes," says Darnell. Between the two pumps he installed a signpost that he got from another Sinclair gas station.
He now uses the antique gas station as storage for his collectibles. All the signs and pumps are removed for winter storage inside and then reinstalled during the summer.
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Russ Darnell, 20502 Hwy. 15 N., Hutchinson, Minn. 55350 (ph 320 587-6495).
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