There aren’t too many of gas stations this old anymore.
According to an article today in the Bloomington Pantagraph, Quinn’s Shell is marking its 70th year of business today at Main and Chestnut streets (map here) in Bloomington, Ill. And, yes, it’s on Route 66.
Though it may look like any other Shell station, it boasts old-time attributes. First, it’s one of the few full-service stations still around. And second …
There aren’t a whole lot of places where a dog can just hang out while his owner fills the gas tank, but Quinn’s Shell in Bloomington is definitely one of them.
Take Coco, a chocolate lab who wandered in for a few treats Friday while owner Dan Riccolo of Bloomington filled up. It has become a regular habit for man and man’s best friend.
“When we’re driving here, when we start getting close, he notices the place, and perks up and gets all excited,” said Riccolo. “This is Coco’s favorite place.”
It just speaks to the informal, throwback atmosphere of Quinn’s, which today celebrates 70 years as a neighborhood service station on the corner of Main and Chestnut streets. Elmo Quinn has owned the business since 1978, and has worked there since his high school years in the 1950s.
Quinn, incidentally, is the fellow who pumps your gas, washes the windshield, and checks your car’s fluids. He’s 71 years old, and he remains the station’s only full-time worker.
And, according to one Yelp review, Quinn’s still sells ethanol-free gasoline.