Before embarking on his long sales career, David D. Hanneman (1933-2007) briefly owned and operated a Standard Oil gasoline station at the corner of Union and State streets in Mauston, Wisconsin. Newly discovered color slides show Hanneman working at the Standard station, most likely in the summer of 1951 after his graduation from Mauston High School.
The photos show a dapper young attendant (think Clark Kent) posed outside the station, leaning on the soda cooler. Another image shows him cleaning the windshield of a customer’s auto, part of the “full service” treatment that disappeared long ago. The station featured the classic pumps that delivered Red Crown regular and White Crown premium gasoline.
During the 1950s, Standard Oil was the dominant domestic oil company in the United States. Its torch-and-oval logo was instantly recognizable to millions of Americans (even after Standard became Amoco). The Mauston Standard station stood at the busiest intersection in the city. A Kwik Trip station occupies the land today.
After owning and managing the station, Hanneman realized the job was not for him. He went on to take classes at La Crosse State (now called University of Wisconsin-La Crosse) and worked as a salesman at Dahl Motors in La Crosse, before his career in pharmaceutical and veterinary medical sales.
The Hanneman Archive 
How can this be on the corner of State and Union? The one that was there in the 60s and beyond had the bays on the other side and there was no house there. It had to be further down just past Water Street on East State street.
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I’m not sure what to tell you, Sandy. The location was confirmed by the Juneau County Historical Society’s archivist, who went to school with my Dad. This was 1951 not 1960. I will check with JCHS again to see if the location could have been somewhere else in Mauston.
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I remember that station was across from county shop and the house in the background is where Ginny Farrand now lives. We lived on Prairie St. and my grandparents owned Homeland Dairy so we drove or walked by there daily as I remember.
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Thanks for sharing this information. I’ve asked my original source at the historical society to see if there is a city directory or telephone book from 1951 that can confirm either location.
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We all make errors, even Rose (who I have the utmost respect for). I get that it was 1951, but highly doubt they tore it down and built a new one that soon, especially since Otto Gunther’s station was not a new building. 🙂 I love the history of our area!! 🙂
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We’ll pin down the location through an old phone book or city directory. I appreciate the heads up on it.
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