Encyclopedia Dubuque
"Encyclopedia Dubuque is the online authority for all things Dubuque, written by the people who know the city best.”
Marshall Cohen—researcher and producer, CNN
Affiliated with the Local History Network of the State Historical Society of Iowa, and the Iowa Museum Association.
MARTIN'S Oil Co.
MARTIN'S Oil Co. was owned by Martin Westerfield, who operated the state's first self-service gas stations at 280 Locust St. and 2175 Central Ave. in Dubuque.
In December 1972, self-service stations became legal in Iowa. This came after a Dubuque County District Court ruling invalidated a state ban on self-service. However, Westerfield had been offering limited self-service at his stations since May in an attempt to "test the law." (1)
Source: 1. "Self-service stations legalized," The Telegraph-Herald, Dec. 13, 1972, p. 33