Archival photo courtesy NYPL
Harlem Bespoke: Uptown gas stations are starting to disappear over the past 50 years and this definitely a sign of the times. The mid 20th century saw the start of automobile culture which had total disregard for community health and the environment and now having fossil fuel stops are not a priority these days. HB will take a look back at some locations on file that we have taken photos over the past 10 years and see what ended up happening to these relics of the past. The small, triangular island at Hancock Place and West 124th Street has always been used for a gas station but the 1927 photo shows quite a different structure in the earlier days than the one most are familiar with today. Instead of the minimal, triangular brick building, the early station was a circular affair with the white doric columns of a Greek temple supporting the decorative roof. Above a substantial, dental cornice was also a sign that read "BANG" from this particular vantage point and consisted of those fancy bulb lights that most associate with old Broadway signage.
By the 1930's, this station would be replaced by an Art Deco Shell station that had the exterior lined with ceramic tiles. That station would also eventually be demolished and the smaller, nondescript model would replace the more intricate version in modern times. Also note the buildings behind the station would too be torn down and replaced by some major housing projects.
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