Bob’s Gasoline Alley

BOB’S GASOLINE ALLEY

Photograph by Nick Fox

Ever since the birth of classic American roadways, small towns and their unique stops along the way have contributed to the iconic status of these old interstate corridors. Roadside communities hold on to treasured locations that define the culture of classic Americana. One of these special towns, located just off I-44 in southeastern Missouri—along the old tracery of Route 66—hosted the largest collection of historic Route 66 gasoline memorabilia in the Midwest. While the one and only Bob’s Gasoline Alley is no longer open, the City of Cuba will never forget the impact of one man’s passion.

As a child, Bob Mullen held a deep fascination with American roadways. Born and raised in Cuba, he spent much of his time sitting on his front porch, watching the cars on the highway whizz by. He often wondered where they were going, and why they tried to get there so fast.

Throughout his adult life, Mullen was a key part of the goings-on in Cuba. He owned several businesses, ran fundraising events, and generally did all that he could to make his home a better place to be. But in 1995, he started something that no one, least of all Mullen himself, expected would garner the world’s attention. He opened Bob’s Gasoline Alley, a place to display and sell the plethora of Route 66 gasoline memorabilia that he and his wife had collected over the years.

“It started with an Anheuser-Busch pitcher,” Darlene Mullen, Bob’s wife, said. “We had a garage full of stuff and we wanted to start a room full of cookie jars. Someone gave him this pitcher with little turkeys on it and that was the first thing to go in there.”

For over 20 years, Bob and Darlene continued to grow their collection of vintage Route 66 memorabilia. They gathered neon signs and clocks, vintage gas pumps, signs advertising anything from gas stations to brands no longer found in the modern market. They expanded first from their garage to an old barn on their property before finishing the construction of a new building.

As the collection grew, the Mullens began bringing in not only vintage pieces from the Mother Road itself, but also many items that held historical significance locally.

“We had the booth out of the Hen House, the bar out of the Rainbow Motel in Cassville, just a lot of local history,” said Darlene. “We had the largest collection in four states, and so many people would come to visit. Channel 5 from St. Louis came and did a big piece, all kinds of magazines, all these stories and stuff. And it would draw people from all over.”

People arrived from Australia and Japan, all across Europe, and even from the Caribbean island of Cuba. It amazed the couple that so much interest in their town and quiet destination was being shown. Bob’s Gasoline Alley was a must-stop for thousands of people a year, including many who would return year after year to enjoy the unique collection, the company of Bob and Darlene, and the food that Darlene would prepare for them. The Mullens hosted everything from funerals to weddings at Bob’s Gasoline Alley. There was no better place to stop for Route 66 enthusiasts and tour groups, and his wit and sense of humor made him part of the attraction.

“He definitely had a following,” said Lori Malcom of the Cuba Visitor Center. “Campers, people traveling in RVs, bikers, they would all come by, or see his place off the highway and stop to see what it was all about. He was such a prominent member of the town, and my first year living here he invited my husband and me to the town Thanksgiving dinner they do every year. He just made everyone feel welcome.”

Sadly, in early March 2020, Bob Mullen died suddenly in his home at age 67. His viewing was one of the largest that Cuba has ever seen. Up and down its stretch of Route 66 that day were classic cars belonging to the nearly 900 people that filled the Knights of Columbus event center. After his death, Darlene wanted to continue Bob’s legacy for people to enjoy. However, within a week of his funeral, it became obvious that that wasn’t an option.

Unbelievably, people began stealing signs and other items from Bob’s Gasoline Alley in the middle of the night. The attraction was located on Bob and Darlene’s own property— and with trespassers raiding the place in the middle of the night, Darlene and her family made the difficult decision to close Bob’s Gasoline Alley for good.

“It would have been nice to keep it open for a while for my sake,” said Darlene. “It was bad enough losing him so suddenly, but to have people coming and stealing things, I just didn’t feel safe. For my own well-being I had to close it.”

The next question that followed was what to do with a huge — several large buildings’ worth huge — collection of Route 66 memorabilia. The easiest answer was to hold an auction, and on July 15, 2020, Aumann Auctions held one — both in person and online. Of course, Darlene kept some things for herself, but no longer is there a room filled with cookie jars and an old turkey pitcher. There are no neon signs, no shelves filled with miniature animals and cars, no old advertisements for Coke or alcohol, and no more of the vintage gas pumps that made Bob’s so special.

But to this day, there are still many people who don’t know of the Alley’s closing or even Bob’s passing. Many of his repeat visitors have been unable to come, and others are simply unaware. Some of the Route 66 tour bus groups still have the Alley on their itinerary, and the Cuba Visitor Center often gets calls asking about it.

“He touched a lot of people’s lives,” sighed Darlene. “Everything that happened out there, that was all by accident. But we’d collect stuff and share it all. He truly loved going out and helping people, and we would have fundraisers all the time. That was just who he was.”

Despite Bob Mullen’s passing, his memory, and the memories that he imparted to the thousands of people who visited his collection, lives on. Just like the winding path of the Mother Road that he loved so much, the vast assemblage of memorabilia that was Bob’s Gasoline Alley will be remembered as a staple of classic Americana.

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