Seaboard Oil Company, corner of Columbus and Highland
Seaboard Oil Company, corner of Columbus and Highland, front and side facade of service station: Tampa, Fla., 1935. Burgert Brothers. Courtesy, Tampa-Hillsborough County Public Library System
Avelar’s Paint and Body Shop, 201 W Columbus at Highland, Tampa, FL. 2020. © Chip Weiner
The Seaboard Oil Company were distributors for The Pure Oil Company and opened or purchased several service stations in the area in the 1930s. Their signature buildings glistened in blue and white design with Tudor revival architecture, and they sold Woco Pep gasoline that claimed to be anti-knock, quick start, and to give cars “smooth the giant power.” In 1950 the operation was named Tip Top Service Station and in 1964 L. J. Cobb Garage. In 2004 the station sold for $89,000. Avelar’s Body Shop now inhabits the building. Look closely, you can still see her beauty peeking through the cracks.