HAMPTON STORES OF THE 40’S, 50’S AND 60’S, PART 3

In the 40’s, 50’s and 60’s one of the largest and most important business in Hampton was the oil and gas business. During this time period, Standard Oil was the largest with five stations, City Service (or Citgo) was second with four stations, and then we had Conoco, Skelly, DX, Sinclair, Deep Rock, Gasoline Alley, Texaco, Champlin, Phillips 66, Shell and Sinclair.
The oil companies owned a few stations, but most were rented by them and owned by either the manager or another investor. Many managers increased their income by providing “full service”, i.e., car maintenance. There were also the bulk “jobbers” who owned a large tank truck, the entire inventory, the facility and accounts receivable. Their initial investment was large and they carried people on the books, but their income was higher. Their big trucks had compartments to hold fuel oil, diesel oil or gasoline for homes and farmers. Just a few of the many jobbers were Ray Tucker for Phillips, Tim Vye for Texaco, Gene Ewens for Shell, Verner Heilskov for Standard. Verner was in business for over 32 years.
Edward C. Foss of Germany and Hilka Smidt immigrated to America in 1880 and their son, Ludwick Hans Foss, known as Louis or Louie, was born in Grimes Township, Cerro Gordo County. Louis was raised in the Meservey area. He and Emma Wilhelmine Guth were raised and schooled in the same area and were married February 18, 1920, in Meservey. Louis was farming during World War I, raising sugar beets. After the war was over there was no demand for sugar beets so he started an oil business in 1921.
Louis, Emma and their son Duane moved to Hampton in 1932, where Louis worked for Standard Oil as an agent. He delivered diesel, fuel oil, gas and motor oil to farmers. Louis owned the oil truck and Standard Oil paid him rent for the truck, Standard Oil owned the oil tank and on the rear of the tank there was a lever, which allowed you to measure five gallons to fill, then you had to move it ahead to pump another five gallons. Louis soon became weary of this and came up with a system that kept track of gallons pumped but allowed him to pump and record any amount needed. When they found out how he was pumping gas, Standard Oil had a fit at first, then installed similar systems in all Standard Oil trucks in Iowa.
The Kratz family built (Howard Kratz was a carpenter) and started a gas station where Dr. Semler’s (now Wood) office is located. This Standard station, built in the late 20s, was known as Kratz Corner. Howard Kratz, who owned the station, his wife Bernice and sons William and John lived upstairs in the second story of the station. Johnny Kratz was an excellent athlete and a very good basketball player at Hampton High School. The Kratz family operated the station and also owned and maintained cabins for travelers. This was one of the early stations that Louis serviced.
Louis was busy with the Standard Oil bulk business, delivering to houses and farms. The family has a very early picture of Louis unloading oil barrels off of a railroad car onto a wagon pulled by horses. Old model T trucks were hard to start with the front hand crank system. One of his early trucks, a model T, had a wooden cab, wooden bed and an oil tank in the bed of the truck. Louis was in a hurry one morning so he left the motor running while he filled the tank with fuel. The tank exploded, and while Louis escaped injury, the truck, being mostly wood, burned to the ground.
Forest Malsed rented a station to Standard Oil on Highway 65 south. Among the operators of this station were Lowell Shull, Dale Bechtel and Marv. Smith. In 1952, Dale Bechtel returned from World War II. He had joined the British Commando’s and was captured and made a prisoner of war. He escaped and came back to the States, as a hero, on a Bond Drive, which ended at Dubuque. There he went to work for John Deere, was laid off, heard about Hampton and came here to work.
Standard Oil also rented a building from Ferris Nursery on the corner of Highway 65 and 12th Avenue (where Edward R. Jones is currently) for another Standard station. When Wayne Ferris attempted to trim some hedges, after receiving complaints about visibility, he was chased away by a nearby homeowner waving a pistol. When the new high school was to be built, workers started to improve the road and were also confronted by the same man, who this time held them off, for a time, with a shotgun.
Rich Kriener purchased the Lutz house and restaurant on Highway 3 west and tore down the house and built a gas station (next door to where Honk and Holler café was located in recent times) Louis Foss then purchased this station and the Lutz Cafe building in 1954. Standard oil rented the station and Carl Jensen ran it, then, over the years, Melvin Lubkeman ran the station and then Harold Meyer, with Louis delivering to the station.
Standard Oil, a very large business in those days, was good for Louis. When he retired at the mandatory age of 65, he received the largest pension Standard Oil had ever paid out for one of their employees in Iowa.
Standard Oil owned a fifth station, which was located across from the old jail in the library parking lot. George Martin, with Louis delivering to this station as well, ran this Standard Station. It was a one bay station but during the war, George, a clever businessman, obtained a permit in 1942, to sell tires and sold new and used Atlas tires, which he bought by the semi-load. George was noted for carrying a big roll of large bills and having a change maker hooked on his belt. Tires were rationed and with his permit he developed an extremely lucrative business and, because of it, was able to buy farmland in the Latimer area.