The weekly North-Carolina standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 186?-1869, 1866-08-15
new PETROLEUM WAS DISCOVERIES.
THE PENNSYLVANIA OIL REGION m 1857


THE PENNSYLVANIA OIL REGION IN 1857.
siirfsigbJ aa1 allsl- e n alfs sllF
The Titusville Pa.) Herald Of the 27th in
! slant gives the following account Of the dis
coyery of petroleum oil: 49,
b "Colonel e. L. Drake, has, for the few past
days, been visiting our city, the scene of his
former labors as the original pioneer Of the
petroleum business. We have collected from
him some "reminiscences OF that great discov-
ery which may be of some interest to our
readers. His first visit to Titusvile was in
the year1857. This was before the build
ing of the Atlantic and Great Western and
Philadelphia and Ere railroads At that
time there was u population Of about one
hundred and twenty five in, Titusville, no
churches and two hotels Among the fami-
lies here at that time were those of J. L. and
E. II. Chase, the Ttuses. and Brewer 6
Watson-the latter were engaged in the lum
bering business The stages ran twice
week from this point to Erie At that time
the oil was collected from the springs on the
Flats by means of blankets or cloths, and
bottled for medical use. Itwas also used for
| lighting the mills. ..s1s a, ~ 5i
h. While sitting in the store Colonel brakes
attention was called to the bottles of oil. and
he expressed incredulity when told it oozed
| from the ground, and the next day accom-
panied DR.. Brewer down the Flats to exam
| inc the phenomenon. He says when he
! found their statement verified, the idea fash
ed upon him that there was basin or spring
of oil in the earth or rocks below. and that
! he then formed resolution of sinking
| u,s,l In rofrr IN, ho ho n
| friends of, the experiment he wished to make,
and expressed the belief that oil would yet
be found in immense quantities in this region,
| and become used extensively in commerce
and the arts. The popular idea in this sec
ton, and even the scientific opinions of Pro-
fessers Silliman and Park, whom Mr.. Drake
consulted on his return to tile East, were that
the oil was the drippings of the coal i'm
bedded in the contiguous hills-that it was
idle to bore for it. and that the only method
of accumuating it was by digging bitches
leading to vat flo .,e
There were no books in the country which
| treated of the subject, and Mr.. Drake had
never had any practical experience in Dor
| ing but he was unable tn divest himself of
the i,iea that this was the true method, an
idea which hunted him by day and night
He induced some men of capital to embark
with him in the enterprise. and entered upon
his experiments in the spring of 1858. His
first step was to visit the salt wells of the
Allegheny and observe the naodus operandi.
Finally he selected spot near Aden's Mills,
below Watson's Flats, and was delayed till
the spring 1859 before Ae had secured
competent driller and the necessary TOOLS
His suppositi0n was that he would have to
sink his well to the depth of one thousand
feet. The same kind of tolls were used then
as now. The driller charged one dollar and
half per foot for boring The enterprise
wss the subject of a good deal Of ridicule on
those parts, and many persons made them
selves merry at the expense of the pioneer.
Mr. brakes assistant proposed to crib to
the rock, which was the ihvariable practice
in those DAYS. Mr. Drake advocated the
driving of iron tube to he rock-an idlel
which the miner secuted. but having failed
to crib, owing to the water. the tubing was
tried and proved success This was an en-
tirely new feature then, lMt is now the uni
versal practice. Indeed, iii now applied to
putting down fresh waite; wells. Had Mr..
Drake procured patent to which he was
Justly entitled for the intention, he would
have realized fortune firm it.
The pipe was driven thfty-two feet to the
rock, and then the well bored thirty-sev
feet and six inches in the first sand rock
Not having any pipe, Mr.. Drake commenced
pumping before he had tued the well, using
common iron water pump for the purpose,
fastening the handle of tn, pipe to the walk
ing-heam. Satisfied by 1is process of the
presence of oil in considerable quantities in
this we'll he went to Erie and Cleveland for
tubing; could find none there nor at Buffalo,
and finally ordered it from Philadelphia
After tubing the we'll it turned out a COM
plete success, pumping twenty-five barrels
day, and continuing when in operation to
yield about this quantity for the period of
two years.
Mr.. Drake was then in the position of the
man who drew the elephant at the rattle, and
did not know what to do with it after he
got it-oil. being comparatively good for
nothing. Then there was no home or foreign
demand for il, no refneries in existence, and
its Illuminating and lubricating properties
were not thn discovered. The parties en-
gagged in the manufacture of coal oil were
slow to acknowledge OF discover that petro-
leume possessed equal Illuminating qualities.
The first refners who commenced refining
petroleum were James McKeown and Samuel
Kier, of Pittburg.
From this period it came rapidly into COM
mercial use, stimulated development, and
rose in value in corresponding degree"