The Five Points Hotel at 235 N. Main St. was once owned by William B. Crouthamel, a Republican. The late Judge Harmon Yerkes, a staunch Democrat, was on the bench from 1883 to 1903 and did not approve of the Republican hotel keeper. As a result, his application for a liquor license was never approved.
Despite being advertised as a “commercial travelers house” offering “very reasonable rates for boarding by day or week” with an attached “stabling and livery,” Five Points was eventually unsuccessful, and the hotel at the corner of Church, Lacy and North Main streets was torn down in 1930.
Next constructed on the site was a Gulf gasoline station, operated by Horace Overholt.
It was described in a 2009 Mercer Museum exhibit as follows:
“The International Style ‘cubes’ or ‘boxes’ of the 1930s and 1940s, with their bright finishes and clean lines were meant to be lit at night. They served as familiar beacons for automotive travelers in search of a fill up and/or a rest stop. Because there was little difference in the quality of gasoline from one brand to the next, companies and local operators competed chiefly on image, service and amenities. This Gulf station is well-prepared to meet the various needs of its customers, from its inevitably clean restrooms to a well-stocked soft drink cooler and pay phone by the door. Free road maps could likely be obtained inside. . . the pump island also features an air hose and filler cans for water.” (The cost of gasoline was 18 cents a gallon.)
In 1966, the 1930s service station was demolished, and the two-bay building was replaced with a three-bay service station which stands there today.
Sources: Milton Rutherford photo; Doylestown Panorama, February 1962
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