Gas valve

I have an old outdoor gas lamp in my backyard that no longer works. I want to rip it out but am not sure if it has gas connected to it still. Just outside the house near the lamp I have a gas valve of some sort that has a small metal line that goes into the ground and presumably to the lamp. I'm pretty sure the valve is closed but am not sure how to tell. Any suggestions? Thanks

You need to look at the side with the square stub. It usually will have an arrow on it. If it points to the side, it is off, if it points along the length of the valve, it is on.

You could remove the valve and put on a cap if you wanted to. then, someone couldn't just turn the knob and leave it running.

Looks like it is rectangular to me... and it looks like it is off. I would cap it off or put a plug into the valve after you remove the small tube. This way no one could open it up like jadnashua says. Cheap insurance.