PHOTO OF THE DAY: MUSEUM’S MONDAY ON MAIN

This photo was posted on Facebook as Heritage Hall Museum & Archives’ weekly “Monday on Main” feature, along with the following text:

For nearly half of the last century, a gas station stood on the east side of Main Street southwest of the Freeman Farmers Coop Elevator. That’s the area northeast of Railway and Main between the Central Farmers Cooperative sign and the large storage bin. This photo appears to be from the 1940-1950 era.
Jacob A. Kleinsasser established the Mobil One White Eagle Service Station on that site in 1924. The station was still included in the business listing in J.J. Mendel’s 1958 “History of Freeman” – one of five gas stations in town. 
In 1970, after the station had closed, Leonard Wiens opened his used car business, Wiens Auto Mart, in the building. Two years later he moved into the building on the west side of Main Street in the 400 block that had been home to the Fred Haar Co. John Deere dealership (which had just moved to Highway 81) and the former gas station became home to Sorensen Surge Service.
Chet and Marge Sorensen moved to Freeman in 1960, selling and servicing Surge dairy equipment out of their garage and a semi-trailer. In 1973 the business moved into the former gas station. It remained there for three years before moving into the former All-American building on the east side of Cedar Street half a block north of Seventh Street. In 1979, their son Sam purchased the business. In 1983, it moved into the building on Sixth Street that today is home to Sioux Nation Freeman Vet Clinic.