Airplane Service Station
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| Airplane Service Station | |
|---|---|
| U.S. National Register of Historic Places | |
| Location: | 6829 Clinton Hwy Powell, Tennessee |
| Nearest city: | Knoxville, Tennessee |
| Built/Founded: | 1930 |
| Architect: | Wayne L. Smith, Elmer F. Nickle, Henry C. Nickle |
| Added to NRHP: | March 18, 2004 |
| NRHP Reference#: | 04000198 |
The Airplane Service Station, also known as the Powell Airplane, is a service station built in 1930 in the shape of an airplane. Located at 6829 Clinton Highway in Powell, a neighborhood in Knox County, Tennessee, it is on the National Register of Historic Places.
The station was built by brothers Elmer and Henry Nickle. Their intent was to increase business by having a service station that was visually unique, both to area residents and to travelers on newly widened US Highway 25.[citation needed] Elmer Nickle had a strong interest in airplanes, and so the station was constructed in the Fantastic architectural style in the shape of an airplane.
The structure ceased being used as a service station in the 1960s, when it became a liquor store. It has also been a produce stand, bait & tackle shop, and a used car lot. It is believed to be the only service station constructed with an airplane as its design concept.[citation needed]{ Knox Heritage and a local organization, the Airplane Filling Station Preservation Association (AFSPA), are working to preserve the structure.
[edit] Paris, Tennessee
There was a second, unrelated airplane-shaped service station built in 1933 in Paris, Tennessee. It was located at the intersection of Mineral Wells Avenue and Memorial Drive. Unlike the Powell station, only the roof was constructed in an airplane shape.
[edit] See also
- Teapot Dome Service Station, 1922 station built in the shape of a teapot
- Shell Service Station, 1930 station built in the shape of a scallop shell
