New clues on the original appearance of the Larkin Gas Station have emerged, hiding in plain sight. In the rear of the long-vacant filling station at 725 Seneca, an Art Deco, brick and concrete facade reveals itself, giving some indication of what a retro, 1960s Gulf Oil sheathing may hide underneath its metal panels.
Commentor David Steele, a writer for Buffalo Rising and architect in Chicago, underscores what may be a preservation dilemma in the potential restoration of what was dubbed Larkin Station #6 in the mail-order company’s property inventory – if, as time goes by, such an opportunity emerges. In this unique preservation case, there is the potential to restore both a highly-intact, rare 1960s metal panel facade, or to unveil and restore an even earlier, and more rare, 1929-30 Art Deco facade.
Here’s the problem, according to Steele: a decision would have to be made that would involve either removing a retro 1960s facade that has itself gained historical value over time, or continuing to hide what may be an older, and potentially more interesting facade of Roaring Twenties vintage. The 1960s facade has real value, as Steele points out. It is the sort of pop architecture that is evocative of Route 66 and the highways and biways of America’s forgotten hinterlands, about which many writers and photographers have devoted significant interest in recent years.
The question is a happy one. Inherent in the seeming dilemma is the reality that there may eventually be an opportunity to restore at least one of the facades. That’s a good thing. The former gas station has been vacant for as long as many current high school students have been alive. It’s a miracle it still stands, given the mixed record of preserving interesting buildings in the Hydraulics.
Time will certainly tell. Gas stations, as building types, have yet to gain considerable traction as targets of historical preservation, especially in cities where landmarks of arguably greater significance are still at risk. But as things continue to look up in the Hydraulics, finding a reuse for this unpolished gem of roadside architecture seems not too unlikely a possibility.
No related posts.
Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.
