Spring Street Service Station

McMinnville, Tennessee's Spring Street Service Station is one of the last surviving examples of the Pure Oil Company's English Cottage service station architectural design. This design was pioneered by Pure Oil's Carl August Peterson. This architectural design was used on all Pure Oil Service Stations from 1920-1940. The idea behind the Pure Oil executive's design was to make their service stations more inviting and welcoming to travelers, and also make them blend in better with homes. The first Pure Oil Station to feature this design was constructed in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Soon these style service stations began appearing all over the country. Eventually Pure Oil began looking at locations in Tennessee to build service stations of this architectural style. McMinnville was chosen largely due to its location. McMinnville is located along the former Memphis to Bristol highway (U.S. Highway 1) and is also located along Highway 70S which connects it with Cookeville, Sparta, Manchester, and Tullahoma. The growing popularity of Rock Island also made the town a popular tourist destination. The site for the new service station was located at the corner of Spring Street and Moreford Street in downtown McMinnville. The building was completed in 1932, and offered travelers a variety of automotive service needs. The Spring Street Service Station contains architectural features common to other Pure Oil Stations throughout the country. These features include but are not limited to a steep gabled roof (both on the building itself and its canopy), decorative bracketing, and a chimney on its south elevation. The building contains two service bays, and historically featured two gas pumps. The building operated as a service station until the early 1990s. In addition to its role as a service station, the building also housed various taxi cab companies. When a new highway was constructed in 1994, downtown McMinnville was bypassed. This resulted in a loss of business at the Spring Street Service Station, and its eventual closure. For the next few years, the building set empty, but finally in 2001 the building was added to the National Register of Historic Places. Using tax credits (a great benefit of listing a property in the National Register) the Spring Street Service Station was restored. According to its National Register nomination form, it was converted into an art gallery. The Spring Street Service Station serves as an excellent example of the National Register of Historic Places and the Investment Tax Credit program put to good use. The building also serves as an excellent example of an intact Pure Oil Service Station from the early 20th century.

At Moore Historical Consulting my #1 priority is historic preservation. Do you own a historic home, commercial building, or farm? If so contact me today to learn more about the historic preservation strategies I offer. These include nominations to the National Register of Historic Places, nominations for a Permanent Conservation Easement, nominations to the Century Farms program, and writing text for historic makers. At Moore Historical Consulting I make exploring and preserving your past fun and easy.

For more information on the Investment Tax Credit program, contact Mr. Louis Jackson at the Tennessee Historical Commission. Louis.Jackson@tn.gov