Cornering the market: He may have taken the apostrophe, but Roy E. Cline left his name on a NM landmark

Clines Corners has served as a beacon for New Mexico travelers at the intersection of Interstate 40 and U.S. 28 for more than 80 years and is named for the man who put it on the map – literally and figuratively.

Roy E. Cline established the travel center in the early 1930s, when the automobile was becoming a staple of American life. According to his March 26, 1982, obituary in the Albuquerque Journal, Cline persuaded the Continental Oil Company to convince Rand McNally and Company to put Clines Corners on its road map.

Cornering the market: He may have taken the apostrophe, but Ray E. Cline left his name on a NM landmark

The intersection signifies to travelers heading south that they will soon arrive in Encino. The town mostly exists in name only now, and its own filling stations have long since dried up along with boarded up and abandoned buildings.

It’s not an unusual story. There are a plethora of ghost gas pumps along New Mexico’s roadways, making the survival of Clines Corners the anomaly for still thriving after eight decades in business.

Its location probably has a lot to do with it. There is nothing available for miles around in each direction.

Its neon lights rise up from the wide-open prairie beckoning hungry travelers with their full bladders and empty gas tanks. It’s also a place where New Mexico puts herself on full display. Beyond the gas pumps and the bathroom facilities is a large souvenir shop featuring everything from shot glasses to blankets to shoes, sombreros and jackets, all showcasing New Mexico’s distinct style.

While the sweeping vistas surrounding Clines Corners can be breathtaking, they are also unrelenting during the winter, with nothing to buffer the freezing winds and blowing snow. Clines Corners sits at about 7,200 feet and weather can be treacherous near the iconic pit stop. Newspapers from the past eight decades are ripe with tales of travelers combating hazardous weather conditions in the area.

A near-blizzard in January of 1939 had Governor John Miles sending local aviator Jack Catron into the sky to search for stranded vehicles near Clines Corners “in fear that the lives of snow-bound motorists may be in danger,” according to the Santa Fe New Mexican’s Jan. 9, 1939, newspaper.

The pilot spotted nine stalled cars and the governor vowed to send out horses and wagons to rescue any stranded travelers. He feared the occupants had abandoned their vehicles and tried to find shelter on foot. Drifts were reported to be 10-feet deep in some areas.

Another winter storm socked New Mexico in December of 1944, dumping 14 inches at Clines Corners, which was the most anywhere in the state.

Cline and his family shuffled around the region before finally settling into a life in New Mexico. In December of 1911, Cline mailed in a money order for $1.50 from Osage, Oklahoma, to the editor of The Morning News, a newspaper in Estancia. He was hoping to secure a subscription.

“I lived in Estancia Valley for a period of two years but I let the two years of dry weather discourage me,” he said. “I came back to Oklahoma and this year I got to see what some real dry weather and a bad season was like.”

He went on to express his desire to return to the state. He obviously did eventually make his way back. An Oct. 2, 1919, article in the Estancia News-Herald noted that Cline and his family had arrived from Oklahoma the previous week and found a place to live in Alta Vista. Cline took a job with the Jenson Bean Company.

The details about exactly when and where Cline first placed his service station is a little murky. Cline started Cline’s Corner service station in 1930 in Lamy and shifted to another location before moving it to its present site in 1935 on land he purchased from the state, according to his obituary.

However, a 2003 article in the Albuquerque Tribune said he established the store in 1934 at the intersection of U.S. 6 and U.S. 2. Although listed as highways, they were probably more like two-lane dirt roads. According to the Tribune story, the roads shifted north in 1937 and became Route 66 (modern-day Interstate 40) and U.S. 285. It’s at this time, the article says, that Cline moved his service station to its current location.

It would be only a few years until Cline sold the entire operation to former state police officers W.A. Ehret and Dave Merchant. When the men purchased the business, it included a store, a cafe and two filling stations, according to a Dec. 1, 1939, story in the Albuquerque Journal.

But Cline didn’t disappear from the business world. He went on to establish the Flying Cline Ranch service stations, the first of which was in 1944 about 19 miles east of Clines Corners. He changed the name to Flying C Ranch after the then owners of Clines Corners threatened to sue him for using the name Cline.

He was also a hotel man, operating lodging establishments in Kingman, Arizona, Truth or Consequences and Mountainair.

Cline died in March of 1982 at the age of 92, leaving behind his landmark.

One thing missing from the current iteration of the name is the apostrophe. It was once known as Cline’s Corners and some joke Cline took the apostrophe with him when he left. Whatever the reason, Clines Corners became the official name of the convenience center. It’s also the name that graces the many red and yellow billboards travelers see long before their tired eyes spot its silhouette against the unending New Mexico horizon.

Curious about how a town, street or building got its name? Email columnist Elaine Briseño at ebriseno@abqjournal.com as she continues the monthly journey in “What’s in a Name?”