W. C. Bradley Real Estate, LLC
Capri Medical Group
Growing Room Child Development Cntrs
Edible Arrangements
HoBart Builders, Inc.
Lane Dermatology & Dermatologic Surgery
Flooring & More Carpet One
Reynolds Bickerstaff/Waddell Realty Co.
Best Nursery and Outdoor Equipment
D. P. Jones Electrical Company
The Hughston Clinic
T&W Oil Company
Hudson Financial Group

T & W OIL COMPANY
6721Macon Road • Columbus• (706) 561-6242

T & W Oil Company is Columbus’s last locally-owned and family-operated oil and gasoline distributor. The company, headquartered at 6721 Macon Road, distributes Marathon and Crown brand gasoline, as well as Shell lubricants.

Four Generations Old
It’s not uncommon for a business to pass from father to son for several generations, but T & W Oil’s history is a variation on that theme. Sons-in-law have taken the reins from one generation to the next.

Joe Herring founded the business in 1926 as Citizens Oil Company and then Cities Service Oil Company. He later joined forces with Dr. Bridges, the area’s Sinclair distributor, and renamed the
company B & H Oil Company. Granddaughter Lynn Thompson remembers her grandfather as being very active in the community with the Lion’s Club and train trips to Washington, D.C.

Herring’s son had no interest in taking over the business but son-in-law James Poole bought the distributorship after World War II and continued its growth and success, and according to daughter, Lynn Thompson, “my father was a kind man who never met a stranger.” He believed in delivering good customer service and in taking care of his employees—traditions that continue today.

In 1980 Lynn and husband, Charles Thompson, took over from Poole and changed the company name to LYNCHAR Inc., dba Thompson Oil Company. In 1985 they took on a partner and the name T&W Oil Company was established. Larry Derby bought out the partner 16 months ago and now handles day-to-day operations as company president.

Although the product is basically the same, the business organization of area oil distributors has changed over the years. Now large national and regional companies are the primary distributors with the products piped into terminals on Miller Road.

Over the years T &Whas supplied several different brands. In 83 years, the gasoline brand sold by the company has changed from Sinclair to BP, to Fina, to Coastal and to presently Crown and Marathon.

Although there have been frequent name changes,many things are constant from generation to generation. “We try to treat our hometown with respect and give our customers the best price possible,” Thompson said. We still have little turnover with staff, and our truck drivers are long-time employees.

The family business remains community-involved, supporting schools, Little League, the Columbus Air Show, fundraising and community awareness events and participates in local civic organizations.

Today’s T & W Oil Company
In addition to the 19 retail gasoline outlets distributing Marathon and one Crown convenience gasoline outlet in Columbus, T & W services local governments and commercial customers within 50 miles. They supply product to school systems, water works and other government entities. The convenience stores attached to the gasoline outlets are now leased. Derby says their latest venture is
bringing back the Crown brand to the area.

They have just completed a joint venture with one of their customers to change some existing stations to the Crown brand including one on Veterans Parkway and another at the back entrance of Maple Ridge near Northside High School. The local Crown stations, which sold to other companies and are now branded Circle K, were known for low prices, issuing their own credit cards and 24-hour operation. Thompson says brand recognition is still high and he suspects they will return to their widely appreciated past practices.

T & W also is a wholesaler of petroleum and lubricant products. They distribute Shell and Aero Shell lubricants and service to the Columbus Metropolitan Airport, among other customers.

Distributes American Products
Marathon is the fourth largest United States-based integrated oil company and the nation’s fifth largest refiner. Its gasoline,with STP® Additives, are available through more than 4,400 Marathon-branded locations in 17 states in the Midwest and Southeast. T &W gets its product through a pipeline from Baton Rouge, La. Thompson is quick to point out that during hurricane Katrina their stations still had product and no customers were left without gasoline. “In times of crisis we do our best to look out for our local customers,“ said Thompson.

Crown is also an American Oil Company that first began in 1917 in Harris County, Texas. All retail locations are operated by independent licensees and their dealers. The company is currently in an expansion mode and will brand five more stores within the next sixmonths in Columbus, Phenix City and Eufaula.

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Phone: 706-324-6214
E-mail: contactus@columbusandthevalley.com