Located in Winston-Salem, Forsyth County, North Carolina, the Shell Service Station opened its doors in 1930 as a result of a decision made in the 1920s by the new local Shell distributor, Quality Oil Co., to increase brand awareness in the Winston-Salem market.
A representative or unique architectural example, the structure was added to the National Register of Historic Places on May 13, 1976, and has been there ever since.
Construction of this one-story Shell station, which is in the shape of a large scallop shell, was completed in 1930 by R.H. Burton and his son, Ralph, near the intersection of Sprague and Peachtree Streets in Winston-Salem, NC. The owners of the oil firm made the decision to entice customers by building a chain of service stations in the shape of shells.
They constructed at least eight stations in the Winston-Salem area, but the station at the intersection of Sprague and Peachtree is the only one now standing. It is possible that the Shell station was inspired by the literalism that was common in some advertisements during the decades of the 1920s and 1930s.
It took one year and $50,000 for Preservation North Carolina, an organization dedicated to the preservation of historic sites, to restore the old train station to its original form. Crews worked to strip away layers of faded yellow paint, revealing the shell’s true yellow-orange color behind the layers of paint.
The original front door was repaired, and a fissure that had previously been sealed with little more than black tar was filled up with caulking. Additionally, the wooden trellised shelter that served as a car wash and allowed cars to be cleaned and/or serviced while in the shade was rebuilt.
In order to complete the repair, Quality Oil Company donated restored gas pumps and replica lamp posts to the cause. The monument is presently used as a museum by the Preservation North Carolina organization.
The Winston-Salem station is one of a number of stations currently under construction. In the United States, Shell is the market leader, with roughly 25,000 Shell-branded gas stations, which also serve as the company’s most visible public presence. Shell is also the company that comes closest to supplying all 50 states, with a presence only in Montana. Shell has a network of gas stations where it sells diesel fuel, gasoline, and LPG.