Shell Service Station
Why it's listed
At the corner of Sprague and Peachtree Streets in Winston-Salem stands a gas station shaped like a giant shell. Built about 1930, the one-story concrete structure rises roughly eighteen feet, with a central front entrance and deeply recessed six-over-one windows in its curving sides. A small wooden shed and brick chimney stack are attached at the rear. According to the son of an original owner, builders boxed in the office, wrapped it in a wire frame, and applied concrete like stucco, forming the ridges with a hose. The Quality Oil Company, founded in 1929 to distribute Shell products, built about eight such stations in the Winston-Salem area to attract customers in a market new to Shell. This is the only one known to survive. It was listed because it shows how literal 1930s advertising could be, with a building that works as a three-dimensional trademark, and because it illustrates the vernacular roots of later Pop architecture.
Significance in brief: The station was built to advertise and sell Shell Oil, and its form literally reproduces the Shell trademark. The nomination presents it as a vestige of 1930s advertising literalism and as a vernacular forerunner of Pop architecture. It is the only known survivor of about eight similar stations built in the Winston-Salem area.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 76001322, listed May 13, 1976. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | Sprague and Peachtree Sts., NW, Winston-Salem |
|---|---|
| County | Forsyth County |
| Listed | May 13, 1976 |
| Reference number | 76001322 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1900- |
| Architect / builder | Contractor: Frank L. Blume & Co. (also given as Frank L. Blum and Company) |
| Areas of significance | Commerce, Art, Invention |
| Level of significance | State |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Described as in good condition and unaltered, occupied, and now used as a lawnmower and small engine repair shop. |
| Acreage | 0.5 |
| Coordinates | 36.06782, -80.21402 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For an income-producing building, listing (individually or as a contributing building in a district) is the gateway to the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit on qualified rehabilitation costs, often stackable with state credits. Work claiming the credit must follow the Secretary of the Interior's Standards and be approved in advance.
Listing does not restrict a private owner acting without federal money or permits; where federal funding or licensing is involved, Section 106 review applies.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 76001322.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q7493692
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.