Property Record
3600 MONROE ST
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | Pure Oil Company Filling Station |
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| Other Name: | Hugh Percy's Service Station |
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| Reference Number: | 110397 |
| Location (Address): | 3600 MONROE ST |
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| County: | Dane |
| City: | Madison |
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| Year Built: | 1937 |
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| Additions: | |
| Survey Date: | 1983 |
| Historic Use: | gas station/service station |
| Architectural Style: | English Revival Styles |
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| Wall Material: | Stone - Unspecified |
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| Demolished?: | No |
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| National/State Register Listing Name: | Not listed |
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| Additional Information: | Map code: 0709-283-0911-5. Building originally featured three gas pumps, a service bay, and a service lift outside. Percy died in 1998. Jerry Nechkash took over the building at that time. "The blue roof and the "P" on the chimney indicate that Percy's used to be a Pure Oil station. At the time it was built in 1937 there were three gas pumps, a service bay, and another service lift outside. It was a charming little oasis on the way out of town where you could fill up your gas tank and have your radiator checked. It was decorated as an English cottage, with geraniums and hollyhocks waving in the summer breeze next to the station, creating a cozy neighborhood atmosphere. When Hugh Percy (simply "Percy" to his friends and customers) took over, he personalized the little station, offering a unique allure. In the front window, Percy displayed 'treasures' he had collected on trips to the Northwoods: beaver-gnawed logs, paper wasp nests, snowshoes, and tree stumps with mushrooms and other fungi growing on them. George Vukelich, who used to visit Percy's frequently, commemorates Percy's in his "Northwoods Country Notebook I" as 'Hugo Willie's Gasolne Emporium;, where "you could hear the news of the day, listen to the cranes mating in the Arboretum wetland just a stone's throw away or ruminate upon where the best snow shoeing country might be. After Percy's death in 1998, his business partner, Jerry Nechkash, took over. He hopes to retore the blue-tiled roof to its original charm in keeping with the photograph he found of the original owners posin in front. Percy's time-worn motto, stuck to the cash register with yellowing tape, continues to be honored as well: "Great Service at a Great Price." Exploring the Dudgeon-Monroe Neighborhood brochure, 1999. |
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| Bibliographic References: | City directory. Exploring the Dudgeon-Monroe Neighborhood brochure, 1999. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |