Phillips 66 Station No. 1423, Chandler Oklahoma

Phillips 66 Station #1423 in Chandler, Oklahoma is symbolic of Route 66 across the state. Used in a variety of local and statewide promotional materials, this station is a striking visual reminder of a roadway that significantly impacted Oklahoma culture, commerce, and transportation. The station is locally significant for its association with the transportation and commercial history of Route 66 in Chandler, as well as for its architecture as an outstanding example of a cottage-style Phillips 66 gas station.

Stations such as the one in Chandler provided critical services to locals and travelers, and greatly contributed to the commercial base of their community. The Phillips 66 Station in Chandler is an early example of the stations first constructed by large gas distributors along major roadways. Companies like Phillips Petroleum standardized the construction of their stations across the country to generate an identity for their brand. Approximately 300 type B Phillips stations were constructed across the country between 1927 and 1938. This was the most popular Phillips style of the era. With the increasing popularity of automobile transportation and of major highways like Route 66, the service station began to change in the late 1930s and into the 1940s, as companies saw the need to offer additional services, like tire and auto repair, at their stations. As a result, stations like the type B in Chandler quickly became too small and outdated. Around 1955, a two-bay service garage was added to the south side of the station to provide repair service to locals and travelers, allowing the station to remain competitive with other stations along Route 66. This service bay was removed in 2000 to return the service station to its original, historic form.

Chandler is the county seat of Lincoln County in north central Oklahoma. The city was founded shortly after the opening of the Sac and Fox reservation in late 1891 and named for Assistant Secretary of the Interior, George Chandler. In March 1897, a massive tornado struck the town, killing nineteen people and destroying the majority of the territorial era buildings. This disaster signaled a new start for the community with the rebuilding of commercial and residential buildings with sturdier, longer-lasting materials. Largely an agricultural area, before the arrival of the St. Louis and Oklahoma City Railway in 1898, Chandler was fairly isolated from the rest of the state, making it difficult for goods and materials to get in or out of the community. In the early twentieth century, the discovery of oil would impact the fortunes of the community and surrounding areas. The designation of US Route 66 through the community in 1926 further connected Chandler to the rest of the state and brought in an influx of travelers and businesses. US Route 66 was decommissioned in the 1980s, but there remains a strong local and tourist interest in the highway and properties with which it was closely associated.

The date of construction of the Phillips 66 Station in Chandler has been the subject of considerable debate over the years. Local publications and newspaper accounts have identified it as being built in the late 1920s, specifically either 1926 or 1928. County records have the date of construction as 1927, however, many original court records for Lincoln County burned along with the courthouse in 1967, and many dates of construction were estimated afterwards. The Sanborn Fire Insurance maps for Chandler are of no help either. Map coverage for 1920 and 1931 exists; the station is not found on the 1920 map, but is present on the 1931 map. Research in the Phillips's archives by the current owners resulted in the location of numerous original documents relating to the construction of cottage style stations during this era, as well as a "Record of Service Station Construction." This document lists the construction of a type B station in Chandler that was completed in October 1930. However, the address given is 6^th and Main, not 7^th and Manvel. The address on the document is apparently a mistake, as there is no Main Street in downtown Chandler. A review of the local Chandler News Publicist, a notable local paper that often chronicled the opening of new businesses, for the year 1930, did not reveal any articles relating to the construction of the station. The Phillips documents appear to be the best primary source available, making 1930 the most reasonable date of construction.

Phillips 66 Station #1423 in Chandler has had many owners and many names over the years. The original operator is unknown. From 1934 to 1940, it was operated by a Mr. McMichael, followed by a Mr. Bolz. By 1949, the station was known as Johnny's North Phillips Service Station. This name was maintained until 1951, when ownership changed and it became Earl Renner's Station. In 1953, the Turner Turnpike, connecting Oklahoma City and Tulsa, opened just north of Chandler. At that time, the local Phillips named stations moved along the turnpike. In 1968, the station is advertised as being associated with the Skelly Oil Company. Mr. Claude Jondahl acquired the station in 1972. In the 1980s, it was associated with Getty Oil and owned by the Westfall family. Eventually, it became a Texaco station and remained under the Texaco brand until it closed in 1992. After its closure, it sat empty and for sale for a number of years until purchased by its current owner, Mr. Fernau, in 1999. Since that time, Mr. Fernau and his company, Patina Properties, has endeavored to stabilize the building and to return it to its former glory.

Property Description

The Phillips 66 Station at 701 S Manvel, is a single-story cottage-style auto filling station in Chandler, Oklahoma built by the Phillips Petroleum Company in 1930. Station #1423 was constructed to serve the transportation needs of local residents as well as travelers along the newly created Route 66 through central Oklahoma. An example of the early house style of station built by Phillips, this property was designed solely for the purpose of pumping gasoline.

The station is adjacent to commercial development along the main thoroughfare in Chandler, Manvel Avenue/Oklahoma Highway 66. Commercial development is located to the north, east, and south, of the station, with residential development to the west. The station is bordered on the east by Manvel Avenue/Oklahoma Highway 66, and on the north by 7" Street. On the west side of the station, there is an open paved space where a concrete block storage area once existed, and on the south side is another area of open paved space that was the location of a two-bay service area built ca 1955 that was recently demolished. There is a metal commercial building south of this open space.

Typical of other cottage-style Phillips 66 stations, this facility was built to mimic the Tudor Revival style popular in the early decades of the twentieth century. This style is characterized by its use of masonry, steeply pitched gabled roof, high chimneys, and tall windows. The Phillips 66 Station #1423 in Chandler is clad in red brick and has a single course of brick in a soldier pattern serving as a water table. The building has a side gabled roof with a steeply pitched front cross gable serving as a portico. The multicolored cement asbestos shingle roof is accented by a wide wooden cornice board.

The primary entrance to the station is located on the east facade along Manvel Avenue. The east facade of the station is dominated by the wall chimney and the steep, cross-gabled portico over the entry door. On the north and south sides of the facade, there are matching sets of eight light metal casement windows with multi-light transoms. The windows have brick sills and brick lintels in a soldier pattern. The wall chimney projects from the main plane of the building, extending above the gabled portico in a tapered fashion. There is a round opening on the wall of the chimney that would have been used for additional signage. The entry door is located within an arched brick opening and consists of a single, paneled wood door with nine glass lights.

On the south side of the building, the only openings are two matching windows. Each is a single, eight-light metal casement with a double-light transom. The windows have brick sills and lintels, identical to those on the main facade.

The west/back side of the building contains two small windows on the south side. Each is a single, six-light casement with brick sill and lintel identical to those found elsewhere on the building.

The north facade contains the entrance to the ladies' restroom and an additional window. The entry door is located on the right (west) side of the facade and consists of a single, narrow wood paneled door with a single window opening that has been in-filled with wood. The base of the door has also suffered substantial damage. The door has a brick lintel. To the left (east) of this doorway, is a double, eight-light metal casement window with a multi-light transom that is identical to those found on the front of the building. The window has a brick sill and lintel identical to those found elsewhere on the building. A circular brick opening is located in the gable end that would originally have been used for additional signage.

On the interior, the station includes an office area, and two restrooms. The men's restroom is accessible from the interior and the women's from the exterior. The original fixtures for each remain. The interior walls of the station are painted brick and the ceiling is painted sheetrock.

Today, Phillips 66 Station #1423 in Chandler appears to be virtually unchanged from 1930. Although the building was altered over the years, with the addition of two service bays on the south and a concrete block storage area on the west, the removal of these additions in recent years has brought the building back to its original form. The building retains its original brick cladding, multi-colored asbestos cement roof, and metal casement windows. Over the years, the exterior brick was painted many times and many colors. According to the blueprints, the original color scheme was orange, green, and blue. By the 1980s, the exterior was white and the owner chose to sandblast down to bare brick. It remains the same color today. Other alterations include the removal of original exterior light fixtures, as well the original gas pumps and air compressor on the service island. The large "P" that was attached to the chimney, as well as the round Phillips 66 insignia that would have been located at various points on the exterior are also missing.

Also on the property is a brick planter with a metal pole featuring an orange and black Phillips 66 sign at its top. The sign is historic but was moved from another location in 2002. At the same time a cast stone planter, inscribed with Oklahoma Route 66 signage, was added to the property.