Not much of a door, but I’m guessing it was a welcome sight back in the 1930s.I spent a few days visiting my brother and my mom in Iowa over the past extended weekend. My brother gave me a short tour of the area around Ames. He included a visit to a restored historic site in Colo, Iowa, where he lived when he was in college at Iowa State University (ISU), and (I think) when he was first teaching in Ames. I would have fact-checked that, but it’s really not important to the story (he can correct it in a comment if he wants to).
As you can see from the photos in the gallery, these aren’t remarkable doors, but the buildings they provide access to are significant.
Back in the 1930s, the intersection where these buildings are located was one of the most important crossroads in the Midwest. It may have still been the intersection of the Lincoln Highway and the Jefferson Highway, or perhaps it was better known as the junction of US Rt-30 and US Rt-65. The Lincoln Highway was the first east-west highway across the United States and the Jefferson Highway was an important north-south crossing.
In the 1930s, gas stations, hotels and restaurants were few and far between. The intersection of these two famed roads included one of each. Gas, food and a place to sleep, if you needed one, were all available. If you want to know what it might be like to experience that kind of a wayside stop, you need to visit that intersection today.
The site includes a restored 1930s era gas station, which serves as a museum; a restored roadside motel and an operational classic diner. My brother stopped so I could snap a few photos (he’s aware of my door addiction). I started to wander around the site when I realized that the café was open. We decided to have breakfast before continuing the tour. Unfortunately, after we were done eating, the area was being drenched in the coldest rain I ever remember falling on me. We ran for the shelter and relative warmth of my brother’s van.
I’m going to give you a break today on the word-count. Most of what I have to share is included in the descriptions of the photos in the gallery and there are a lot of photos today. Please note: My editor doesn’t review the descriptions. Any errors in those are NOT her fault.
In addition to serving the needs of motorists, the station was also a bus stop for the Greyhound and Jefferson lines. Cross country by bus.
The museum didn’t appear to be open and the sun made it hard to get a picture without a reflection. I’m sure I have followers who could have given me some tips on taking a better photo, but it looked better on the LCD screen of my camera.
The Visible Gas Pump let you see how much gas you were getting and whether or not it contained any impurities. You pumped the amount you wanted to buy into the globe, and then gravity fed it into your car. these were one of the first pumps that could deliver gas from underground storage tanks.
The restoration job on this gas station is amazing. a lot of people and businesses donated to the project.
There were about a dozen of these plaques along a self-guided tour on the grounds.
You could never get mechanical repairs made here, but you could get tires and an oil change if you needed them.
The station was built by Charles Reed and it was in operation form the early 30s until 1967.
I am guessing that this was a very welcome sight to the travelers along the Lincoln Highway in the 40s.
This was a fun place to eat breakfast and the food was excellent.
I’m sure there was one for the Jefferson Highway, but that rain was cold.
The hotel rooms have been restored and you can rent them today.
That’s Alice Ramsey. The first woman to drive across America
In 1909, Alice Ramsey became the first woman to drive an automobile from coast to coast across America. She was 22.
You might have been driving one of those across the Lincoln Highway in 1940.
The cafe was also a nice little museum.
I was around when they started building the Interstate Highway System, but this was the predecessor to that network.
We had a very nice breakfast here.
As with every other Thursday since that First Door on March 26th, this post is part of the interesting and inspired series of Thursday Doors organized by Norm Frampton. You are encouraged to join us door nuts each week. To learn more, head on over to Norm’s blog.
I like this. The screen door is just like the one on the back porch of the very first house I ever bought. There is so much to be said for the ‘old things’. Nice post, Dan.
Thanks Lois. I once made a screen door like that for a friend who wanted to add a real door to a screened enclosure off the side or their (parked) RV. It’s a classic.
Thanks Norm. I wish the rain hadn’t chased us away. The next time I visit my brother, I’ll check the schedule on the museum portion of the gas station. It looked like they had some fun stuff in there.
Cool, Dan. I love the part about gravity feeding gas into tanks. This reminds me of a lesson my daughter had recently on the Erie Canal, and the development of locks whereby the water is raised or lowered within an elevator type system. So simple, yet ingenious.
Thanks Elizabeth. In addition to a simple delivery system, you got some exercise. Pumping the gas into the globe was a manual effort. Missing your blog. I hope things are OK.
I am a sucker for history. My brother is a retired history teacher. I always thought history was unimportant (when I was in school) but I became a huge fan well after graduation. Opportunities lost, but opportunities found.
Ha! True, Dan, not much of a door, but honestly, this may be my favorite one yet. Because what matters in the end is not the door, but where it leads. And any kind of old-style “Route 66” type of diner or café is very appealing to me.
I hope the food is good there, because I love the atmosphere. You can almost feel the sheer retro romance of the place through these pics. Anything that harkens back to the call of the open road works for me. Alice Ramsey had the right idea!
I love those old gas pumps, and the Diner reminded me of the play “Bus Stop”. They had a freak snow storm the day the play is set in.
The play is actually set in the Diner. I wonder if William…hum forgot the authors last name…anyway I wonder if he used this location as his muse for the play?
Great history, and images today Dan!
FWIW- a circular polarizer can help a lot to cut down glare, and reflections when photographing through windows.
Thank you! It’s always interesting when these posts lead to more research. It’s been a long time since I saw that play (I think I was in high school). Thanks for the tip on the filter.
Great pictures that tell us so much about the history of this place. I have seen a completely different USA through your blog posts. What a way to tour United States.
Yeah I wish I could rewind time and walk in that era. I’ll share a secret here. Although, it will make me seem stupid. Like we all know earlier movies are in b/w. So, as a kid I used to think that the world itself used to be black and white and hence the b/w movies and probably the colors were invented in the 60s and 70s a decade before I was born. One sunny afternoon, with honesty I asked my mother. Mom, how was life before colors? She was like, what colors? I was like, this world which was colorless earlier. When everything in this world was b/w or grey. She just couldn’t stop laughing at my childish innocence. But she later explained me that only the movies were b/w, the world was always colored.
That’s funny. That’s also a great experience to include in a story someday. I don’t think it’s stupid. We all imagine our world in various ways. If I could go back in time, I think I might enjoy it.
Dan, what a charming place and worthy restoration. It’s places like this that make me believe in time travel – just looking at your photos, I could imagine the ‘buzz’ of people coming and going, bus brakes, silverware clicking, waitresses stucking pencils in their hair nets. I will look at the location on a map – having concluded that road trips from Colorado take two days before we get ‘anywhere’, Hub and I agreed we need to adjust focus and explore Nebraska, Iowa and Wyoming instead of just speeding across them because by then we’re tired of the road trip! Right now we’re on a trip of a different kind – Hub had knee replacement surgery yesterday so our trip today is down the hospital hall. He’s doing great – home tomorrow and trick or treating on Sat (well spectating, at least). 😊
It would be about an hours ride from Des Moines although I’m guessing you could cut the corner and reduce that. It’s pretty easy to imagine life in that time. Thanks for stopping by and good luck to your hubby and that knee.
I’m glad you went to visit family because this was a really interesting post. I’ve never seen one of those gas pumps up close and didn’t really understand how they worked. The diner looks like a fun place to grab breakfast for sure. The post made me think about the days when you pulled in for gas and you got full service – tire checked, windows washed, and everything. Nice post. :-)
And Green Stamps! Or a glass with that fill-up. I remember those days so well. Thanks for the comment Judy. I’m glad people enjoyed a simple door that opened to a very nice place.
Oh my goodness – Green Stamps. I hadn’t thought of them in forever. I remember putting those little guys in the book and then trading them in. Thanks for the memories!
Green Stamps! Oh my gosh, does that take me back. We kids used to lick the stamps and put them in the books for my Mother. I used to look through the catalog all the time.
She scored our glasses, dinnerware, probably the flatware too, and many our Christmas gifts using Green Stamps. Of course we thought it was Santa Claus then. Wow. I hadn’t thought of Green Stamps in decades! Thanks for tripping the switch to open that memory.
Pictures from a different era. How fast life has changed in such a short period of time. Those pumps are SO cool! Again it is good to see someone preserving history instead of tearing things down. And as for mistakes? I didn’t see any. Please don’t be so hard on yourself. (smile) Love, Amy <3
It’s amazing how these “door” posts bring out such a variety of ideas. I am forwarding this post to my husband, since we will be spending time in Iowa not only this winter, but probably for a longer stretch of time in the next couple of years. I can feel a road trip coming on. Thanks for the travel guide. :-D
My brother and his wife covered a lot of ground from there on their bikes (non-Harley). It’s so amazing to me, how quickly you go from urban to nothing but corn. I have to say, that rain was cold!
The old fashioned full service gas stations were awesome places, bringing lots of memories back. When kept so well it becomes like a museum, including so much history. Mom said the Texaco gas station attendants were so quick and friendly. She described their white uniforms with logo on pocket of tucked in shirt.
I really liked this post, Dan. Not too many around either. Great times spent in Iowa and I enjoyed hearing about the famous Niland/Reed corner. The diner was truly special with memorable icons featured, too.
I used to collect memorabilia, Dan. Antique tin signs, old coke and other old soda bottles. We had a soda fountain “bar” in our (built in 1999 with last husband) basement which displayed those old cut glass tall “V-shaped soda glasses, we had root beer, orange crush and coke float “parties” with our teens. I had old Quaker Oats bowls, too. When we had our moving sale, I was happy when collectors bought who were really going to hang things, less happy with those who were buying to resell them.
That sounds like a cool bar Robin. I would hate to have to sell stuff like that, especially to people planning to resell. I remember the spiffy service station attendants. So much has changed. Thanks for reading and sharing your experience in the comments.
Old gas pumps and dinners, really I love that. During our first cross country trip in the early 2000s, I fell in love with these sights. The period was far from being perfect but there is something so American and irresistible for me, born in France. Thanks for the trip.
I remember finding places like this when our family traveled prior to the Interstate highways bring built. We spent hours and hours driving from one little town to the next. We always knew where we were stopping for lunch and it was s big deal. Of course, even in the 50s and 60s, the pumps were more modern, but nothing like the self-serve desks today. Thanks for reading. I’m glad you enjoyed it.
[…] felt that that requirement had been met after we had breakfast in Colo at Niland’s Café. I did feature those doors, but I was still looking for an interesting […]
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