The red brick building with the canopy over the gas pumps opened in 1920 as one of four Standard Oil Company gasoline stations in this western Nebraska community. Today, the building and a detached “service” garage are known as the Spruce Street Station Visitor’s Center. They stand at the north entrance to the downtown business district, kitty-corner from the U.S. Post Office which is on the National Register of Historic Places. Thanks to the efforts of the Ogallala Main Street board and committees and the Nebraska State Historic Preservation Office, the former filling station is also on the National Register of Historic Places. After coats of white paint and years of sitting vacant, the property was restored and dedicated in 2003 as part of ceremonies for the 90th Anniversary of “America’s Original Main Street,” the Lincoln Highway. A group of drivers and more than 40 antique cars participating in a coast-to-coast tour of the highway more popularly known as Highway 30, was on hand. The building is significant because it represents the age of petroleum marketing which was the most significant period of growth for the Standard Oil Company as it ambitiously expanded its retail operations through a building program of company-owned and company-operated filling stations. Starting with 24 locations in 1919, by 1930 the company had stations in about 130 Nebraska communities. Local newspaper reports referred to the building as “a nifty brick filling station” in a location that was “a good one and it makes the business section of the town look much bigger.” Funding for the project was provided by Transportation Enhancement and National Scenic Byways grants, the city and local fund-raising efforts.
