The Kanotex Refining Company (reporting mark: KOTX), a regional oil refinery and gasoline distributor, began operation in Caney, Kansas, in 1909,[1] a successor to the Superior Refining Company. The company's logo was a Kansas sunflower behind a five-point star;[2] the Kan-O-Tex name referred to Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas as the states in which the company originally marketed its products.
| Industry | petroleum refining and distribution |
|---|---|
| Predecessor | Superior Refining Company |
| Founded | 1909 |
| Defunct | October 1953 |
| Fate | Sold to APCO |
| Successor | Anderson-Prichard Oil Corporation |
| Headquarters | , United States |
Area served | Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Missouri |
History edit
John McEwen Ames became the company's president in 1915[3] and established a main refinery in Arkansas City, Kansas, in 1917[4] which would become the base of the company's operations. While the initial market was Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas, Meyer Brothers Gas Station & General Store in Orchard Farm, Missouri, sold Kan-O-Tex fuel in the late 1920s; by 1930, Kan-O-Tex products were advertised locally in St. Joseph, Missouri, by the Home Oil and Gas Corporation, a chain of nineteen filling stations.[5]
The Kan-O-Tex brand and reporting mark were acquired by the now-defunct Anderson-Prichard Oil Corporation of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, in October 1953 and are no longer in use.
One Kan-O-Tex Service Station, the former Little's Service Station on U.S. Route 66 in Galena, Kansas, was restored in 2007 as a diner and souvenir shop as part of wider efforts to rebuild and market the historic U.S. Route 66 as a tourism destination.[6]
References edit
- ^ Staff. "Identified Sites List Information: Former Kanotex Refinery (Caney)". Kansas Department of Health and Environment, Bureau of Environmental Remediation. Retrieved May 5, 2012.
- ^ Witzel, Michael; Steil, Tim (2003). Roadside Americana: Gas-Food-Lodging. St. Paul, MN: Crestline. p. 146. ISBN 9780760317723. Retrieved May 5, 2012.
- ^ Connelley, William E. (1918). "John McEwen Ames". A Standard History of Kansas and Kansans. Chicago: Lewis Publishing Company. OCLC 3487917. Retrieved May 5, 2012.
- ^ Junge, Aspen (June 30, 2010). "Refining History" (PDF). Kansas Department of Health and Environment. Retrieved May 5, 2012.
- ^ "A High Test Ethyl Gasoline Chosen for the Mystery Car" (Advertisement). St. Joseph Gazette. August 30, 1930. p. 12. Retrieved May 5, 2012.
- ^ Meyer, Frankie (June 25, 2011). "Connect with History on Day Trips". The Joplin Globe. Retrieved May 5, 2012.