The gas station in America
"Why were early gas stations built to resemble English cottages and Greek temples? How does Teddy Roosevelt's busting of the Standard Oil Trust in 1911 relate to the lack of Exxon and Chevron stations in the Midwest today? What corporate decisions and economic pressures lay behind the Bauhaus-inspired stations of the 1930s? Is there a link between feminism and the rise of the Gas'n'Go-style convenience store? What have gas stations symbolized in the American experience?" "Geographer John Jakle and historian Keith Sculle have teamed up to write a unique and comprehensive history of the American gas station - its architecture, its place in the landscape and in popular culture, and its economic role as the most visible manifestation of one of the country's largest industries. Here is the definitive book on the subject, from the first curbside filling stations - with their juryrigged water tanks and garden hoses - to the nationwide chains of look-alike stations whose design pioneered the "place-product-packaging" concept copied by motels and fast-food restaurants." "Jakle and Sculle begin with a look at how the gas station evolved in response to America's growing mobility. They describe the oil company marketing strategies that led to the familiar brand names, logos, uniforms, and station designs that came to dominate the nation's highways. They explain why certain companies and their stations thrived in certain regions while others failed. And they document the reasons for the gas station's abrupt decline in recent decades." "Illustrated with more than 150 photos and drawings - of gas stations, vintage advertisements, maps, and memorabilia - the book offers a wealth of information and colorful details."
Print Book, English, ©1994
Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, ©1994
History
xi, 272 pages : illustrations, maps ; 27 cm.
9780801847233, 9780801847240, 9780801869198, 0801847230, 0801847249, 0801869196
28927327
Gas Stations in Generational Perspective
Place-Product-Packaging
Marketing Strategies in the Petroleum Industry
Corporate Territoriality
The Gas Station as Form
Gas Station Design
The Large Corporation
Gas Station Design
The Small Entrepreneur
Gas Stations as a Feature of Urban Landscape
Conclusion