We were having some fun the other day looking through variations of designs for the filling station over the last few years and thought we'd share them with you.
This crude rendering from 2020 looks like it was made in Minecraft. It was made before we started looking at and drawing inspiration from other vintage gas stations. Thankfully we gave up on this version and moved on.
Our 2021 designs showed a lot of improvement both in layout and our ability to create more attractive renderings. By this point we had started to look at vintage Texaco designs and incorporate some of their architectural elements into our project.
By Late 2021 we had started incorporating even more vintage Gulf and Texaco station style elements including the tower in the center and curved lines on the building and windows.
This curved style of architecture is known as "Streamline Moderne". It is meant to be reminiscent of an airfoil and was considered very modern and high tech when these gas stations were being constructed in the 30s-50s.
By 2022 our design was really beginning to take shape and the current model was being refined. The tower in the center was modeled after a Gulf station that used to be on Broad Street, Philadelphia. (pictured below)
After some additional details were added our design was ready to be submitted to the Historic Preservation Committee for review. We had hoped to find a station like what we designed that we could actually visit. Unfortunately, all of these stations were torn down in the 1970s and 80s during a difficult economic period for Gulf that ultimately led to the company's acquisition by Chevron in 1984
Some more cool pictures of vintage gas stations can be seen on our road trip posts. We have toured dozens of vintage filling stations all over the country that have been converted into restaurants, bakeries, and more.
