Small “mom and pop” gas stations are few and far between in the present-day southern Berkshires. This 1969 winter view depicts the Mobil gas pumps at the North Egremont Country Store. An earlier gas pump from this location still survives and is part of a prized private collection in Chatham, N.Y. Records indicate that a small store at this location dates back to about 1814.
This stretch of Route 71 heading north was sometimes referred to as “Gasoline Alley.” There was a small gas station in Alford through the 1960s, and three gas stations operated in the neighboring hamlet of Green River, N.Y.
Across the street from the store are the old Fratalone family barns, and before that the Boice family farm. Pine trees block the view of the surviving barns in the present-day photo shown below.
