Remembering the old Sinclair gas station in Chaffee

CHAFFEE, Mo. — The old Sinclair gas station in Chaffee that had been abandoned and overgrown for years was burned down by the Chaffee volunteer firefighters April 2.

More than 30 people watched as the town landmark was demolished and burned down.

The station was known to many as the Bess Sinclair service station that was run from 1964 to 1994 by the late Dennis Bess; others knew it as AJs after it had been sold.

Sue Bess Scheffer, Dennis Bess' daughter, said that during the time her father owned and operated the station, he kept it immaculate, going so far as saying customers could have eaten off his floors if they had wanted to.

Seeing the condition of the station in the end was hard, she said.

The old Sinclair gas station is demolished and burned by Chaffee, Missouri, volunteer firefighters April 2 in Chaffee.Alyssa Lunsford

The old Sinclair gas station is demolished and burned by Chaffee, Missouri, volunteer firefighters April 2 in Chaffee.Alyssa Lunsford

Scheffer said she had many memories of the station, and remembers her father loving all the children who came through; a bench local men sat on to "solve the world's problems" that was called the "liar's bench"; and the way her father treated everyone the same way when they walked through the door, whether it was a family member or someone just filling up their tank.

Scheffer said it was a very emotional experience watching the station come down, and felt as if it was the end of an era for her, even though her father closed his business in 1994.