High's of Baltimore, LLC, doing business as High's, is a chain of

gas stations A filling station (also known as a gas station [] or petrol station []) is a facility that sells fuel and engine lubricants for motor vehicles. The most common fuels sold are gasoline (or petrol) and diesel fuel. Fuel dispensers are used to ...

and

convenience store A convenience store, convenience shop, bakkal, bodega, corner store, corner shop, superette or mini-mart is a small retail store that stocks a range of everyday items such as convenience food, groceries, beverages, tobacco products, lotter ...

s in and around

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

. , the chain has 60 locations, the majority of which are in Maryland, plus three in

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states, South Atlantic regions of the United States. It borders Maryland to its south and west, Pennsylvania to its north, New Jersey ...

. At one time, High's was the largest ice cream store in the world with over 500 stores, including locations in

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

West Virginia West Virginia is a mountainous U.S. state, state in the Southern United States, Southern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.The United States Census Bureau, Census Bureau and the Association of American ...

, and

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

History

The original iteration of High's was High's Ice Cream, an ice cream parlor founded by L.W. High in

Richmond, Virginia Richmond ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. Incorporated in 1742, Richmond has been an independent city (United States), independent city since 1871. ...

in 1928 and purchased by James R. High Jr. with two partners in 1938, at which time there were 16 stores and an ice cream plant in Richmond. In 1941, Convenient Systems, Inc. of

Winston-Salem, North Carolina Winston-Salem is a city in Forsyth County, North Carolina, United States, and its county seat. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 249,545, making it the List of municipalities in North Carolina, fifth-most populous ...

purchased the chain, then numbering 50 stores. Gregory remained at the helm until 1976. The company was acquired by the Capital Milk Producers Cooperative, who grew the chain to 350 High's Dairy Stores and Restaurants, and sold the Virginia and West Virginia stores in 1987 to

Southland Corporation 7-Eleven, Inc. is an American convenience store chain, headquartered in Irving, Texas. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Seven-Eleven Japan, which in turn is owned by the retail holdings company Seven & I Holdings. The chain was founded i ...

, who converted many of them to

7-Eleven 7-Eleven, Inc. is an American convenience store chain, headquartered in Irving, Texas. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Seven-Eleven Japan, which in turn is owned by the retail holdings company Seven & I Holdings. The chain was founde ...

stores, and closed the rest. Fuel at High's gas stations was previously supplied by

Shell Shell may refer to: Architecture and design * Shell (structure), a thin structure ** Concrete shell, a thin shell of concrete, usually with no interior columns or exterior buttresses Science Biology * Seashell, a hard outer layer of a marine ani ...

and

Citgo Citgo Petroleum Corporation, or Citgo (stylized as CITGO), is a United States–based refiner, transporter and marketer of transportation fuels, lubricants, petrochemicals and other industrial products. Headquartered in the Energy Corridor area ...

. High's first made a foray into proprietary fuel branding in 2011, when it was rolled out at a prototype station in

Chester, Maryland Chester is a census-designated place on Kent Island in Queen Anne's County, Maryland, United States. The population was 3,723 at the 2000 census. Geography Chester is located at (38.971907, −76.288045). According to the United States Ce ...

. On March 1, 2012, High's, then based in

Hanover, Maryland Hanover is an Unincorporated area, unincorporated community in the Baltimore/Annapolis area in northwestern Anne Arundel County, Maryland, Anne Arundel County and eastern Howard County, Maryland, Howard County in the U.S. state of Maryland, locate ...

, was acquired by the Carroll Independent Fuel Company. Following the Carroll deal, most High's stores broke their ties with Shell and Citgo, began selling High's-branded fuel supplied by Carroll, and underwent remodels. Some High's locations continue to sell Shell-branded fuel. High's is now based in Carroll's Baltimore headquarters.

Ice cream

The right to produce High's brand of ice cream was sold in 1989 to Kay's Ice Cream, based in

Knoxville, Tennessee Knoxville is a city in Knox County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. It is located on the Tennessee River and had a population of 190,740 at the 2020 United States census. It is the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division ...

(which was subsequently acquired by C. F. Sauer Company in 1990). Until 2010 there was a High's Ice Cream parlor remaining in

Portsmouth, Virginia Portsmouth is an Independent city (United States), independent city in southeastern Virginia, United States. It lies across the Elizabeth River (Virginia), Elizabeth River from Norfolk, Virginia, Norfolk. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ...

, but it sold Hershey's brand ice cream. At the time of its closing, it still had the original High's interior (though showing its age) including the white and black checkerboard floor tiles that High's Ice Cream stores were known for. High's still sells its own brand of ice cream in quart sized containers, along with several selections of hand dipped varieties.

References

External links

Official website
{{Convenience stores Culture of Baltimore Companies based in Baltimore Economy of the Eastern United States Convenience stores of the United States 1932 establishments in Virginia Retail companies established in 1932 Ice cream parlors in the United States American companies established in 1932