Road-trip Highlight: Groovy Gas Pump

Canada Road-trip Highlight - We spotted a groovy old gas pump!

Mid May, we road-tripped and camped in Ontario. It was a cold morning, with snow still on the ground near our campsite, so we were up early. After grabbing coffee, we drove around to warm up and found ourselves at a historic silver mine point with a little shop and Esso gas pump.

I looked up the Gilbert & Barker Mfg. Co. and they are the first producers of the iconic sought-after towering gas pumps. There is a nice short read from the Smithsonian on the background of Charles Gilbert and John Barker's "gas machine".

(Link to Smithsonian article: https://www.si.edu/object/nmah_1326341)

Interesting to think about lead in gas...and paint/toys/etc. It is a heavy metal that causes severe, irreversible brain damage. Maybe that factored into the sucess and era of full-service stations, where you sat in your car while someone else filled you up??

Nice to see vintage pumps in the wild!