The following is an article from Gardens to Gables by Janie-Rice Brother about the old service station located on highway 68 near Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill.
June 16, 2021 by Janie-Rice Brother
One of the thrills of my profession and avocation is when someone decides to save a historic building. Last week, I received an email from the new owners of the wonderful historic filling station on US 68 in Mercer County, Kentucky – and they want to restore it!
The former view of the gas station as you approach from the Kentucky River.
I may have squealed a bit and done a tiny dance. And then – I was browsing through Instagram and I saw THIS!
The vegetation has been cleared out, and the historic building can breathe for the first time in decades! Photograph by @danielmorris777 on Instagram.
Do forgive my multiple exclamation points – sometimes being a lover of historic buildings is a sad and depressing path. Writing about demolitions, worrying about the farmland I see from the windows of my house, and tallying up the costs of restoring our enormous wood windows – when happy news arrives, celebration is definitely in order.
I first wrote about this little filling station and its irresistible geode-festooned façade in June 2020, as the realities of shut downs and Pandemic life were only beginning to take root. So I could not conduct any research beyond my own library and my own photographs. The new owners, along with the joyous news of their intentions, also shared an amazing historic photograph.
Circa 1920s image of the filling station.
I hope to share more of this story as it progresses, and I hope you will join with me in wishing the new owners the very best of luck and a heartfelt thank you for their decision to save this historic treasure.
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