The Swifty gas station at the corner of Main and Hackberry Street in Salem joins locations in Sellersburg, Connersville, Corydon and Bedford that have been closed this year.
Yellow tape went up this afternoon and pumps have been shut off most of the day.
Personnel were removing point of sale equipment from the office this afternoon and would not make any official comments.
Corporate officials from the company’s Seymour headquarters did not comment on the closing.
Several WSLM listeners and social media followers began reporting closings in Sellersburg, Corydon and Connersville.
Earlier this year, at least five Swifty’s gas stations in Louisville abruptly closed, with no word from the corporation of its plans at the properties.
According to some unofficial reports, Marathon has taken over some Swifty locations. Rumors have already circulated that Walgreens might be buying the corner to develop a store to compete with CVS Pharmacy. They had looked at locating in Salem before but the property they wanted to buy was not available for sale either time.
The company operates roughly 180 combination gas stations and convenience stores under the Swifty Food Mart banner in five states in the Midwest and the South. Swifty Oil Co. was founded in the 1960s by the Myers family and was owned and run by its chairman, Don Myers Sr.
The Columbuzz reports, it started with 2 stations and one tanker getting the Myer family into the oil business, but it was Don Myer who bought 7 stations and formed Swifty Oil Co.. The station started and continues to be the only service station which still has an attendant pump your gas.
Swifty Gas Stations expanded to 181 gasoline stations and convenience marts multiplying in a number of states since it was opened in 1963. Before that venture, Don Meyers helped his mother open Kocolene, a company now owned by it’s employees. Kocolene owns Fast Max, Smokers Host Tobacco, Ranger enterprising which is warehousing and logistics along with an environmental company Komac.
However 92-year-old Myers passed away in July two months after his death several locations closed in the Louisville area.
The current president is William R. Klinger who took this position in October 2011 and in Aug 2013 filed a Change of Registered office with the State of Indiana. One month after Don Myer’s death.
Since the family no longer wants to be part of the Swifty Oil Company it is reported “the owner passed away and the family is selling out.”
