One block away from the Pilot Point downtown square, a decaying pump at former gas station offers a glimpse into the mid-1930s.
At one time the station was home to the Magnolia Petroleum Co. A sign bearing the company's name is prominently displayed outside. The pump still has the gas price set at 34.9 cents per gallon.
The old gas pump is now part of a restaurant called Magnolia Station. It is owned by David Delcourt II, who finished renovating the property at 110 E. Liberty St. in August.
"I am a bit chilly, give me just one second," said Delcourt, 49, as a Western swing band plays in the background. He gets up from a bench to get a gas heater to warm his sit-down restaurant.
"We have a solution for all problems," he said.
Delcourt calls his restaurant a glorified hot dog stand. It is nicely situated next to his home on East Liberty Street and U.S. Highway 377.
"It just had cinderblocks. It had no frames, no ceilings, no plumbing - nothing," he said of the business.
In five months, Delcourt turned the old gas station into a cozy restaurant that offers a wide variety of menu items - from barbecue and sandwiches to Southern and Tex-Mex dishes.
"I was working in other restaurants in town and living next door. This old gas station has been here dilapidated for decades," he said. "I thought I could get it, put a kitchen in it and serve food."
Delcourt said the station is one of the buildings in town listed on the National Historic Register, so he went to a local historical committee to show members what he wanted to do with the station.
"I took a picture from 1948 and showed it to them," he said. "I wanted to make it look like that again and we did. The stripes on the building are all the same size. I tried to match the colors as good as I could. I added a red stripe at the top of the building instead of just being solid blue. Other than that, it looks like it did 67 years ago."
Karen Walterscheid, executive director of the Pilot Point Chamber of Commerce, describes Delcourt's work in one word: "fabulous."
"I am so glad that someone took on something like that and turned it into something," she said.
Walterscheid said it is not the first time Delcourt has been involved in preserving an old site. Delcourt and 20 others were part of the team that rebuilt the Pilot Point Community Opera House.
"They were working on it for the last three or five years. It has been several things," Walterscheid said. Delcourt joined the chamber last year, she said, and is now a member of the Pilot Point Community Opera House board.
She said the community has embraced the various restoration and renovation projects, including a new day spa called Purple Door located on the square.
"We have a lot of people who have redone their facades," she said, mentioning businesses along the north side of the square.
Originally from Pleasanton, Delcourt said he is always fascinated with Texas heritage.
"I like its history and I like to preserve those things," he said.
When asked what he envisions for the future of his business, Delcourt said he would like to expand his restaurant concept to other Texas towns.
"I want people to like it and take it to other towns. If it is successful, we could have more than one," he said.
Since its opening, the residents have embraced Delcourt's concept. On Facebook, he posts daily specials and photos of some of the meals.
Residents come by at all hours to enjoy the food. On a recent morning, customer Tom Wheeler ordered a breakfast sandwich and talked about how much he enjoyed Delcourt's new place.
He said he stopped in to fill up almost every day.
Karina Ramírezcan be reached at 940-566-6878. Her e-mail address is kramirez@dentonrc.com.
