Charley's Automotive Service
National Register of Historic Places

Charley's Automotive Service

Grants, Cibola County, New Mexico
Listed
October 4, 2017
Type
Building
Period
Pre Contact
Ref No.
100001715

About this property

Charley's Automotive Service, at 1310 W. Santa Fe Ave., is a roadside business and home complex on the former route of U.S. Route 66, in Grants, New Mexico. It was listed on the New Mexico State Register of Cultural Properties on February 19, 2010. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2017. It is a set of five pumice block buildings associated with entrepreneur Charley Diaz. It includes a former automotive and radiator service, the Star Cafe, and Charley Diaz's residence, as well as few sheds and a stranded 1959 Chevrolet Bel Air, a gift from Diaz to his wife. Together these "communicate in their form and simplicity a localized expression of the independent roadside business on U.S. 66." Alternate names include Charlie's Radiator Service and Star Cafe Drive-in. "Charley (sometimes spelled Charlie) Diaz built the garage himself out of pumice blocks in 1943 along Santa Fe Avenue—Grants’ section of Route 66–amid a burgeoning strip of hotels, shops, and gas stations. According to the register application for the garage, Diaz later decided to specialize in two automobile components vital to New Mexico travelers–radiators and, eventually, air-conditioning systems–and, in 1949, added a small cafe for his great uncle to run. After Diaz’ death in 1995, the garage and many of the tools Diaz used, dating back to when it opened, remained in place."

Location

1310 W. Santa Fe Ave.
Grants, Cibola County, New Mexico
35.15560, -107.86375

Categories

COMMERCETRANSPORTATIONARCHITECTURE
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Nearby Historic Sites

Route 66, State Maintained from McCartys to Grants
Industrial
7.1 mi
Bowlin's Old Crater Trading Post
Civil War
11.3 mi
Acoma Curio Shop
Industrial
15.8 mi
Route 66 Rural Historic District: Laguna to McCarty's
Listed
19.9 mi
Village of Encinal Day School
Industrial
22.7 mi

Questions about this property

When was Charley's Automotive Service listed on the National Register?

Charley's Automotive Service was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 4, 2017.

What type of historic resource is Charley's Automotive Service?

Charley's Automotive Service is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Charley's Automotive Service?

The period of significance for Charley's Automotive Service is recorded as the pre_contact era, specifically around 1310.

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