Go-Mart To Open 100th Outlet
ELKVIEW, W.Va. -- Go-Mart will open its newest gas station this Saturday, September 30 at the Elkview exit of Interstate 79 in West Virginia, making it the 100th outlet for the family-owned company, which operates stores in West Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky and Virginia, the Daily Mail reported.
The company will celebrate the opening through Friday, Oct. 6, with giveaways and special events, the report stated.
The Elkview station will feature 12 pumps with 24 positions, and is located on the southwest corner of the I-79 northbound exit ramp, which is on the way home for many commuters who work in Charleston and live in the Elkview area.
Go-Mart traces its history to 1914 when brothers Fred, Charles and Rod Heater, operating as the Heater Oil Co., began selling axle grease, kerosene and other petroleum products to farms and businesses in central West Virginia, using flat-bottomed boats on the Little Kanawha River, according to the report.
By the early 1920s the Heater brothers were operating bulk plants along railroad lines, and following the Great Depression and the death of Charles Heater, Fred Heater decided to centralize the business in Gassaway, where it is headquartered today. In the early 1960s, Fred Heater's health was failing and he sold the business to his sons, John, William and James.
When self-service gasoline pumps were legalized in West Virginia in 1970, the Heaters built the state's first self-service gas station, in Shinnston, and called it "Go-Tron." Six months later they rebuilt their Gassaway store into their first convenience food and gas store and Manager Karen Sattler named it "Go-Mart," according to the report.
By 1977, Go-Mart had 16 stores. The company now employes approximately 1,200 people and is the state's 41st largest private employer.
The company will celebrate the opening through Friday, Oct. 6, with giveaways and special events, the report stated.
The Elkview station will feature 12 pumps with 24 positions, and is located on the southwest corner of the I-79 northbound exit ramp, which is on the way home for many commuters who work in Charleston and live in the Elkview area.
Go-Mart traces its history to 1914 when brothers Fred, Charles and Rod Heater, operating as the Heater Oil Co., began selling axle grease, kerosene and other petroleum products to farms and businesses in central West Virginia, using flat-bottomed boats on the Little Kanawha River, according to the report.
By the early 1920s the Heater brothers were operating bulk plants along railroad lines, and following the Great Depression and the death of Charles Heater, Fred Heater decided to centralize the business in Gassaway, where it is headquartered today. In the early 1960s, Fred Heater's health was failing and he sold the business to his sons, John, William and James.
When self-service gasoline pumps were legalized in West Virginia in 1970, the Heaters built the state's first self-service gas station, in Shinnston, and called it "Go-Tron." Six months later they rebuilt their Gassaway store into their first convenience food and gas store and Manager Karen Sattler named it "Go-Mart," according to the report.
By 1977, Go-Mart had 16 stores. The company now employes approximately 1,200 people and is the state's 41st largest private employer.