At the intersection of 36 and 231 is the Corner Quick Stop with gas and goodies. It's a Wavaho station, and I have often wondered about the history of this small company. I did a bit of research but haven't found much.
The Dun & Bradstreet site has a page for the Wavaho Oil Company that gives a few basic details. The company was founded in 1958, and annual revenue was listed as more than $6,700,000. Walter V. Hough was the name given as a contact and the phone number as 256-881-3621. A wavaho.com site has been crawled by the Internet Archive since 2001, but only a placeholder page was saved each time. The domain was registered in November 1999.
Perhaps one day I'll give them a call or stop by and try to learn a little more.
I find small operations that have survived in industries dominated by much bigger players to be fascinating. According to Google Maps, there are also Wavaho gas stations in Decatur, Huntsville and Pinson. Another one in Birmingham pops up on a Google search. If you know of others or more about the company, tell us in the comment section!
UPDATE on June 30, 2023
Romario Gardner of WAFF channel 48 in Huntsville reports on issues related to the Wavaho gas station on Pulaski Pike; the station's business license has been revoked. Her report notes the station is owned by Albara, Inc.
UPDATE on August 3, 2022
I added at the end two photos of the Wavaho Station in Priceville, very close to Decatur, which is still operating.
UPDATE on June 26, 2021
UPDATE on February 25, 2018:
An informant tells me that the company's name comes from the first two letters of the founder's name--Walter Van Hough.
The "Wavaho Oil Co Inc" lettering has been removed from the building shown below, but you can still make them out on the brick.
UPDATE on February 25, 2018:
An informant tells me that the company's name comes from the first two letters of the founder's name--Walter Van Hough.
UPDATE on October 12, 2010:
I passed the station heading home and found this sign in front of the building; I wonder what's going on.
Here's the office building facing Alabama 36 and just behind the gas station and store.
That iconic sign appears in a couple of places.
Source: Google Maps
Wavaho station at 732 Highway 67 South in Priceville
Glad to see that Wavaho stations are still around.
ReplyDeleteI went to Elementary school back in the late 80's with a grandson of Mr. Walter Van Hough.
Very nice family.
Still a small company that keeps people coming back for more.
The 3 names are separate last names from what I understand. I met a descendent of the Vann family. He mentioned his grandfather or father helped start it. But I too wanted to know if this was fact verse someone pulling my leg. Unfortunately, as you’ve said, there isn’t enough info out there to know. But the source, I had seemed reputable to me so I have believed the story of 3 people’s last names for years.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for this information! That version is also a possibility...I guess I need to stop by their office and see if anyone there can confirm one version or another.
ReplyDeleteWalter Vann Hough started Wavaho oil Company back in 1956. The original store is the one next to the office in Lacey's spring. The first two letters of each of his name's.. Walter Vann Hough make up Wavaho. The family has a Cherokee background hence the Indian logo. I would know I'm named after the man ;) I do not own Wavaho, but my dad and uncle do. They have continued the same business principles my Parents put in place where the people are first and then comes the business. Love your article. That's what Wavaho is!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for this information which really answers the question in this blog post's title! And I'm glad you enjoyed the post...
DeleteI have leased several locations from Wavaho in Guntersville, Decatur, Athens, Hazelgreen and Huntsville over the years. It's an old school company tightly run by two brothers with a strong emphasis on values and customer service. They have always been honest in my dealings with them.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for the information!
DeleteI have leased several locations from Wavaho in Guntersville, Decatur, Athens, Hazelgreen and Huntsville over the years. It's an old school company tightly run by two brothers with a strong emphasis on values and customer service. They have always been honest in my dealings with them.
ReplyDeleteThere's one in Athens next to the middle school (old high school)
ReplyDeleteThanks for the info!
DeleteAs a former employee for this company, I can tell you that these were some of the most down to earth people to work with. The company was founded by the father, Walter Vann Hough and was bought by the two sons who took over the company alone. Walter built the company from the ground up after getting out of the military. Sadly, the company has been sold and is now under the ownership of PetroSouth out if Huntsville, AL. And yes, the company got its name from the first two letters of Walters names. It's really sad to see this family business history fade, but its still there. In Lacey's Spring, AL.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your insights! Feel free to leave more...
DeleteSpot on
DeleteNever have seen this chain outside of N.Ala,and now I know why? Got to thinking about this company after describing an old sign from my youth to someone. The sign was the one at the Wavaho station near the corner of Drave Ave & Triana Blvd in Huntsville. Stacked neon letters that spelled out 'Wavaho'. They would flash out three times one at a time "W-A-V-A-H-O" then three more times "WAVAHO". I recall this sign as early as my first posting at Redstone Arsenal (Right down the street,Drake takes you onto post & changes names to 'Goss Rd') about 1970. It was there as well during two more postings in the mid '70s and again in the early '80s,and was still there (and working) when I last visited Huntsville in Sept,2017? That sign if it is not an Official Landmark in Huntsville ought to be???
ReplyDeleteI just saw a Wavaho in Florence Alabama that I didn't realize was there until now. It brought back memories of when my dad used to own a gas station that sold Wavaho gas off of Shoals Creek. I remember the gas was a penny cheaper than the gas of other stations in the surrounding area. This was back when you would go out to pump the gas for the customer and wash their windows.
ReplyDeleteToday their gas was a much better deal than the neighboring store which got me to wondering and so I stumbled across this post. Glad someone was on here talking about it.
Thanks for your comments! I wonder how many stations in total were in the chain....
DeleteUsed the Wavaho in Florence today Regular gas was $3.29 a gal. The Shell station across the road was $3.36. Filled my tank up for $44.75. From now on I will shop at the Wavaho station!!!
ReplyDeleteThanks for that report! Glad that one is still operating.
Delete