TST Gas
Sacramento, CA
Photo courtesy Dave & Debra van Hulsteyn

Here’s the old TST Gas station in Sacramento, already closed and waiting for someone to give the property another chance. The pumps may have gone quiet, but the little station still had plenty of roadside character. Hopefully the next stop was not the wrecking ball.

Small independent gas stations like this once dotted the roads around Sacramento. Pull in, fill up, check under the hood, and maybe grab some directions before heading back out. Once the pumps disappeared, many of these old stations became repair shops, used car lots, or simply vacant corners waiting for a new use.

UPDATE: The exact location of TST Gas has not been confirmed, so the fate of the station and its old roadside sign remains unknown. 09-26

Broderick Gas (Demolished)
Sacramento, CA
Photo courtesy Dave & Debra van Hulsteyn

Here’s the old Broderick Gas station, looking remarkably clean and ready for another round of travelers. With its simple lines and tidy appearance, this little station seemed to have rolled right out of an earlier roadside era.

Broderick Gas stood along Sacramento Avenue just west of the I Street Bridge, where traffic crossed the river between Sacramento and Yolo counties. Although often listed as Sacramento, the station was actually in the old community of Broderick, now part of West Sacramento.

UPDATE: Broderick Gas and its roadside signage have been demolished. 09-26

Inflation Tires (Closed)
Sacramento, CA
Photo courtesy Dave & Debra van Hulsteyn

Here’s a little deco delight along Stockton Boulevard. Inflation Tires occupied an old Flying A gas station with a great Streamline Moderne roofline and a decorative tower rising above the center. Too bad the paint scheme and fence made the original architecture a little harder to appreciate.

The building later became a meeting place for Last Days Ministry, but that use did not last long. Look past the later changes and the shape of the old neighborhood service station is still easy to spot.

UPDATE: The building has been vacant, boarded up, and fenced off since around 2014. The Inflation Tires signs have been removed. 09-26

Summit Garage (Closed)
Altamont, CA
Photo courtesy Dave & Debra van Hulsteyn

The old Summit Garage looks like it has been waiting beside Altamont Pass for quite a few travelers. The painted “Summit Garage, W.J. Armstrong” lettering still stretches across the front, along with a reminder that towing and repairs were available.

The garage stood at the 741-foot summit along the original 1913 Lincoln Highway, giving early motorists a handy place to stop when their cars objected to the climb. It later became a youth center where teenagers learned to restore classic cars.

UPDATE: Summit Garage closed to regular automotive use in 2007 but the historic building and painted lettering survive. A Lincoln Highway marker was installed outside in 2008. 09-26

Harders Gas (Gone)
Artois, CA
Photo courtesy Dave & Debra van Hulsteyn

Here’s the faded old Harder’s Gas station in Artois. The drive-under canopy was built right into the front of the station, a style once common along valley highways during the days of Dust Bowl migration. By the time of this photo, the paint was tired and the pumps were quiet, but the old roadside shape was still there.

Harder’s stood along Front Street, the former route of Highway 99W through town. Artois itself was known as Germantown until 1918, giving this little highway stop another layer of local history.

UPDATE: Harder’s Gas has long been closed. Its exact location along old Highway 99W and the current fate of the station have not been confirmed. 09-26