Missoula’s Gilly’s Gas & Grocery: Local Icon Remembered

Growing up in Missoula near 3rd Street and Reserve gave me plenty of places to get into trouble. Back in my day, I could take a handwritten note from my dad and a ten-dollar bill into nearby Gilly’s Gas Station to pick up a pack of smokes and some penny candy.

Laws were very lenient, and safety standards were lax back then. I would run across Reserve Street as an 8-year-old and be excited to be tasked with getting my parents cigarettes. Mostly because they gave me enough money to buy a candy bar and a handful of Swedish fish. I figured this was generous payment for the job, and I adopted it as my weekly chore. I became very fond of the small-town corner gas station, and it was a staple in my universe for decades.

Taking a Look Back at Gilly’s Gas & Grocery in Missoula

Gilly’s Gas & Grocery served Missoula for more than four decades before closing in 2019. Located at 2340 S. 3rd St. W., the neighborhood station opened in 1983 under the ownership of Jerry Gillingham.

The business operated as a small, independent gas station with two fuel pumps and a compact convenience store. Residents of the River Road neighborhood and drivers along South Third Street West could stop in for fuel, snacks, and basic household items. Employment records listed the business as typically maintaining a staff of about five people.

During my teen years, I would stop in and have my one meal of the day, a protein bar and a soda. Once I started driving, I used Gilly’s as one of the cheapest places to get a tank of gas for my 1980 Jeep Renegade.

Over the years, Missoula’s fuel landscape shifted, with larger chains and self-service gas stations becoming the norm. Gilly’s continued to operate through these industry changes, remaining a recognizable local stop well into the 2010s. Missoula County Permit & Business License Coordinator Danny Hathaway said, “Gilly’s changed ownership in 2019 and has been the 3rd Street Market since.”

Why Gilly’s Mattered to Locals

In total, Gilly’s Gas & Grocery operated for approximately 42 years, providing fuel and convenience items to residents and travelers in Missoula’s River Road neighborhood. For me, Gilly’s was more than a gas station, it gave me a small sense of purpose, even if that purpose was just to pick up cigarettes and sugar.