The Southland Oil Corporation operated in the southeastern U. S. and marketed under the SOC brand. This 1963 map used a Rand McNally generic cover. During the early Sixties, Southland Oil Corporation was acquired by Signal Oil and Gas; note the similarity between the map covers of Signal's west coast Hancock-Norwalk-Regal operation as well as Billups, which operated in the same south central region as did SOC.
Caption pending Sovereign was a branding used by independent dealers in the midwest. Stations meeting specified standards were eligible to use the Sovereign brand and were supported by the franchise program's marketing activities. The Sovereign program lasted between the Thirties and Fifties, by which time most of the participants had adopted their own brands for marketing.
Caption pending Speedway started out as a Michigan-based refiner/marketer. By the time this 1961 map had been issued, the company had been purchased by Marathon. The Speedway brand was replaced by Marathon in 1962 but was to be resurrected thirteen years later by Marathon for use at its fuel-only retail locations (i.e., stations without service bays and the like). As Marathon moved into the convenience store market, the Speedway name was adopted for petroleum sales at those stores; a once-dormant brand name has now become one of the powerhouses in the convenience store industry.
Caption pending Caption pending
Caption pending Spur Distributing was based in Nashville, Tennessee and was started during the Twenties as a trackside retailer. By the Fifties, Spur had expanded to serve a number of states. This map was issued in 1953.
Murphy Oil Company was a long time oil producer and exploration company that decided to enter petroleum retailing in the late Fifties. The company first acquired Illinois-based River States in 1957, then Spur Distributing in 1960, and Ingram in 1961. In 1962, Murphy adopted the Spur name and a new oval and spur logo and replaced all the predecessor brands with that logo and name. The company's extensive marketing region can be seen on this early Sixties map. Star was a regional marketer based in Centralia, Illinois. It is still in existence. This map bears a rubber stamp from Carlisle, Illinois, which is in the company's "home turf" in south central Illinois.
This map was issued in 1954 by the Farmers Union State Exchange, a cooperative association based in Omaha, Nebraska. Caption pending
Sterling was the brand used by the Quaker State company to market gasoline in New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and West Virginia. For similar reasons to Pennzoil's choice of the Pennzip name as their gasoline brand, Quaker State chose the Sterling brand for their gasoline marketing. Sterling stations were rebranded to the Quaker State name around 1960. Caption pending
The Sun Oil Company was founded in Philadelphia in 1890 and, beginning in 1920, started retail marketing in the Northeast with a modest presence in Chicago and in the south. This beautifully-colored map was issued in 1932. Caption pending
Sun Oil Company also had a Canadian subsidiary that operated in Canada's eastern provinces. This unusual strip map is undated but appears to originate in the Thirties. Sun Oil Company acquired Tulsa-based Sunray DX Oil Company in 1968 and, since there was little overlap in the two companies' marketing areas, the company retained Sunoco and DX brand names for its retail operations. This map was issued in 1972.
Caption pending Caption pending
Superamerica was a gasoline and convenience store chain founded by the St. Paul, Minnesota-based Northwestern Refining Company during the Sixties. Superamerica stores were located in several midwestern states. This map was issued in the early Seventies before the chain's acquisition by Ashland and subsequent expansion. Caption pending
Superior 400 was another regional discounter retailing in the central midwest. This map dates from 1965. This unique map was issued by Ontario's Superior Propane in 1983 during a period in which propane's use as a motor fuel was being investigated.
Superline was a Canadian independent operating in the maritime provinces. This map was issued in 1949. The Super Par brand was in use in several states in the central and southeastern states and was affiliated with Pure for some years. This map was issued in 1964.
Founded in London, Ontario in 1923 and headquartered in that city for its entire existence, Supertest advertised itself as "Canada's All-Canadian Company" and operated in the provinces of Ontario and Québec. As with many Supertest maps from this period, this 1949 map is printed with reversable covers — one featuring Ontario and the other featuring Québec. This Supertest map was issued in 1950 with reversable covers; depending on the way the map was folded at the printer, either the Ontario or Québec legends were visible as the map sat in its rack. This rather unusual reversable cover feature was used by several Canadian map makers during this period. This map was designed by the Copp Clark Company of Toronto.
This 1954 map, like other Supertest maps from the period, had reversable covers with one cover featuring Ontario and the other featuring Québec. This allowed Supertest to use a single map to cover the two provinces in which the company marketed. This 1964 map of Toronto depicts Supertest's new, simplified logo and the city maps that they began issuing during the early Sixties.
This 1971 map was the last issued under Supertest's independent ownership; during the year of issue, Supertest was sold to BP Canada which had acquired Cities Service's Canadian operations in 1964. Under BP ownership since the previous year, this 1972 map is identical in design to BP's maps from that period with the exception of the Supertest logo, now shorn of its "All-Canadian" designation. In coming years, maps would be issued with both BP and Supertest logos as the transition from Supertest to the BP brand began.

Saturday, June 25, 2005