The true northerner., 1880-08-06
On CITY, PA, August 2, 1880.
EprroR TRUE NoRrHERNER:

EDITOR TRUE NoRrHERSER:
Among the hills indeed; surrounded on al
sides by hills five hundred feet high, and stu
ated on the Allegheny river, is OIL City,-th'
centre for all oil OF the PENNSYLVANIA oil region
The great rush at the present time is for Brad
ford, northern part OF Pennsylvania, where
daily are found twenty or thirty barrel oil wells
Most OF the crude oil OF the State finds it's way
to this city for refining; ii Is brought in tanks
by fat cars, or is pumped here by engines.
Wells are struck, and 80 long as the gas holds
out twenty to thirty barrels of oil are sent out
and into tanks without the aid OF man or ma
chinery. After the gas has escaped the wells
are pumped by means OF derrick and engine.
These derricks very much resemble the frame
work OF our wind mills. In almost every door
yard Of this city you will find a derrick which
has been, or is now used for pumping the crude
oil from the earth. There are generally two
OF these derricKs, about thirty feet apart, and a
small engine between them. Recently stepping
into one of-these houses what was our surprise
to see none but woman sitting beside the en-
glne, sewing, and being questioned answered.
u. am running this myself" Upon inquiry l
found that this is very common occurrence
here. Old wells that now yield but barrels per
day, one at morning and one in the afternoon,
are pumped by the woman Of the house while
the husband is about his daily work. Verify
woman will some day have her rights
Across the river are the tanks and refinery Of
the United Pipe Lines, which company, by the
way, is one OF the largest in the country. Here
on their grounds are found fifteen iron tanks,
holding from twenty-five to thirty thousand
barrels each, winch are filed and emptied by
i've inch pipes that run IN every direction.
Some are laid TO Pittsburgh, others to Cleve-
land, Bradford, etc. The oil is brought and
sent through these pipes to the different towns
by means OF powerful engines, situated from
twelve to twenty-five miles apart Til ese pipes
run over hills and over the mountains, any
where and everywhere. 1t IS said by the oil
kings that these pipes Will soon be put through
to New York, and oil from tanks in Pennsyl-
vania Will in short time after leaving this
State be loaded on to ships for foreign markets
directly from these pipes.
The Oil Exchange OF this city is very fine
building. Fortunes are made and lost within
its walls, daily. One party OF this place made
one hundred and fifty thousand dollars in a
single hour in the exchange. Sixty telegraph
operators are employed in the building, whose
calls minghng with the bids of the bulls and
bears Imake it quite exciting. About twelve
hundred messages are sent daily to Bradford,
besides those sent to many other places, so
that one can imagine the amount Of business
done. The last week has been marked by some
of the most rapid changes OF the season. The
undercureat OF strength during the week
seemed to be at ninety cents per barrel. Mon
day opened with SO "a c.; declined and closed
at 81 2-S. Thursday the bulls had carried
the price up to S1.03 Is, when very large
sale Of 650,000 barrels broke the market, and
the ''bears" raised triumphant shout. Sat-
urday nights closing was SO 1-sc. Tota! bar
refs for the week. 100000
f.. !. DARLING