An iconic Fayette institution is changing hands. For more than 57 years the Bagbys have been pumping gas, washing windows, checking oil, and keeping cars on the road from their service station in downtown Fayette. More than half a century after Fay Bagby began operating Home Oil Company, his sons, Don, 66, and Gary, 74, will pass the reins to a younger set of brothers: Vince, Max, and Hank Hilderbrand.

The Hilderbrands will take over ownership in early January 2022.

Vince said that keeping the business locally owned was of paramount importance in making the decision to purchase the station. “I didn’t want some big company to come in and not keep the business the same,” he said. “That would hurt a lot of people.”

Talks began about a year ago, even as the Hilderbrands, along with another brother, Alex, still owned the Nest, a popular bar and restaurant in Fayette. They sold the bar in August when Max began teaching and coaching in Tipton.

Hank will be a familiar face to regular customers of Home Oil. For nearly four years he manned the gas pumps and washed windshields before working elsewhere for a brief time. Now he is back and will add management responsibilities to his list of duties. And while Vince and Max are employed in other industries, they expect to work at the station on evenings and weekends. “Don and Gary have put a lot into that business and they would like to see somebody continue and keep it local,” Hank said.

The full-service station will not see many changes. The hours will remain largely unchanged. On weekdays the station will open at 5 a.m. and close at 6:30 p.m. and will be open from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturdays. Customers can still expect to have their gas pumped, windows washed, oil checked, and tires properly inflated. And the charge accounts on which so many rely will remain. The station will still perform oil changes and other vehicle maintenance and will continue to sell tires. Even Don will continue to work at the station, albeit slightly less than his usual 85- to 90-hour workweek.

Don said he will stay on to not only help with the transition but stay on as a regular employee. “I’m going to keep working,” he said. “I am going to be here with them as long as they’ll have me. I really enjoy interacting with people. I’ve made a lot of good friends.”

Gary said he plans to retire from the business, although he will be on hand to help the Hilderbrands when needed. He will continue his duties with Friemonth-Freese Funeral Home and as president of the Fayette Area Heritage Association. He said that he intends to dedicate more time to his church and model railroading. He and Don both expressed the desire to spend more time with their grandchildren.

“I’m going to spend some time on the road to Illinois because that’s where my grandchildren live,” Gary said.

Home Oil was founded in 1927 by Tom Deatherage and Cale Parrish with one gas pump in a livery stable on Morrison Street. Later, the business added fuel delivery to farmers and a service station on the corner of Morrison and Linn streets.

In 1964, Fay Bagby leased the filling station. He officially purchased the business five years later. The station moved to its current location on the corner of Church and Davis streets in 1977. At that time the station pumped gas from the Standard Oil Company but moved back to selling Sinclair fuels in the early 2000s.

Fay passed away in 2006 at the age of 92.

Gary served as the business’s bulk plant operator and tank wagon driver. In 2018, the Bagbys sold the bulk plant portion of the business to Wright’s Oil Company in Salisbury, which now supplies Home Oil’s fuel.

“It’s been a pretty good ride,” Gary said. “Particularly good because there are so many wonderful people in this community. It’s been an honor and a privilege to serve them.”

Gary began working at the station in 1964 as a high school junior. He later attended Central Methodist College and taught history in the Fayette public school for a year and a half before joining the United States Air Force. He returned to the business in 1973 following his enlistment.

Gary said he is appreciative that the Hilderbrand brothers will be the ones to take over the business. “They have a great interest in the betterment of the community. Don and I feel very fortunate that we were able to find a buyer for our business whom we have confidence in, and we feel as best they can continue the business as we have been operating it.”

Don said he looks forward to continuing working at Home Oil after the sale. He said he loves working with people and especially loves the people who have worked with him at the station over the years. “We’ve had high school kids forever and I can say that every one of them is one of my best friends. It’s crazy. They all come back and see me.”

Don and Gary have had a front-row seat to the goings-on of Fayette and Howard County from their place on the northwest corner of the square. “I’ve seen 60 years of parades, homecomings, band days. It’s all been so good,” Don said. “Gary’s kids grew up here. My kids grew up here. I kind of grew up here.”

Over the years Don and Gary have pumped gas for just about everyone in town, and many more. “The whole county’s been just so good. I have so many people who come in from Central who work there and go to school there,” said Don. “I’ve had a Chiefs quarterback come in, I’ve had congressmen come in here. Norm Stuart came in here. Carl Edwards came in here one time.”

Don began working at the station in June of 1982. He worked there all through college at Central and even came back on weekends while teaching elementary school more than an hour’s drive away in Brookfield. He also coached football, wrestling, and track there. He even helped coach football at Central Methodist.

Home Oil is the last full-service station in town. Not only do they pump gas and clean windshields for their customers, but Don is also often be spotted changing flat tires and jump-starting cars throughout town wherever people need help. “That’s what we’re supposed to do. It feels good to be needed,” he said.

“I don’t think Don realizes his impact on the community,” said Vince. “The Bagbys have done so much for this town. I would really like to thank them for all the years they have served in the community.” 

Hank explained that even recently, Don went out after hours on a Saturday evening to help someone who was stranded with a flat tire. “They called him up and he came down to the shop, fixed them up, and got them going.

“I don’t think you can really fill Don’s shoes. But we’re going to try our best to give that same service that Don’s given the last 50 years,” said Hank.