Airplane Service Station, Historic filling station in Powell, Tennessee.
The Airplane Service Station is a filling station in Powell shaped like an airplane with wings and a fuselage. The building sits along Clinton Highway and now houses a barbershop while keeping its original exterior form.
Brothers Elmer and Henry Nickle built this structure in 1930 during the early days of American automobile travel. The design was a response to the new trend of using architectural gimmicks to attract drivers on modern highways.
This building reflects the 1930s trend when businesses used bold shapes to catch the attention of drivers passing by on highways. The airplane design was a symbol of modernity and progress in America at that time.
The building sits at 6829 Clinton Highway and is easy to spot from the road. The interior spaces are compact, but wooden paneling inside creates more room than the exterior suggests.
The airplane design of the station was a creative way in the 1930s to get drivers to stop and take notice. Though a barbershop operates there today, the exterior still reflects the creative business spirit of that early era.
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