The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1883-08-11


istence of petroleum in the now famous
bradford region, and to his persistence
IN manifesting his faith by his works,
led to the development of the territory
and transforming wilderness into one
OF the most populous and wealthy COM
munities in Pennsylvania, has sold his
vast possessions in the region and re-
moved to New York City. Twenty
years ago the oil excitement in Oil
Creek, in the lower field, was at its
height, and Moses, having made large
fortune in patent medicines, with head
quarters in Rochester, was attacked by
the oil fever. The symptoms In his case
took the form Of mania to develop
new petroleum field. and Investigations
led him to Bradford, in the valley ofth
Tunungawant Creek. He advanced the
theory at once that there was q vast
lake of petroleum underlying the whole
region, and he set about securing terri
tory upon which to test his theory.
Bradford was then mere hamlet of
score or so of scattered families, de-
pending on numbering and farming for
support. When Moses began his opera
tons the business of the Bradford
branch amounted to about $4,000
month, and when he made the prophecy
that the day was not distant when that
amount would be increased ten-fold
through the oil that would be found. on
all sides of it, the belief that he was
crazy was strengthened in the COM
munity.
For thirteen years Job Moses pros
h. ~tc.~ .v~1
through the valley, his faith never wa
vering. Then his fortune was exhaust
ed, and he had thousands of acres of
unproductive rocks and forest on his
hands. At that time oil wells were
drilled to depth of not over nine hum
dred feet, at which depth the deposit
was found in the lower field. When
Moses had spent all his money, the ear
nestness and enthusiasm with which he
chung to the theory that there was oil
in the region led outside capitalists
to come to his aid. In 1875 the
idea occurred to some one
it is not known exactly to
whom now-that it would be q reason
able risk to drill well deeper than the
lower region depth. This was done,
and at the depth of LOO feet the oil
sand was found and a fifty-barrel flow
ing well was struck. II was discovered
then that the Bradford oil was in
third sand, while the Oil Greek deposit
was in q second sand, below the sur
face.
The strike created much excitement
in the valley, but outsiders had no faith
in the extent of the field or the ''last-
ing" qualities of the sand. Job Moses
had, however, and he was content to
await events. He held on to his land,
every one proving to be good pro-
ducer. But it was not until 1877 that
the persistence and pluck of the pioneer
oil-operator in the Mexican field were
crowned with full success. The wells
in the lower field had long ceased to
flow, and the supply of oil depended on
the pump. The Bradford wells were
not only all flowing wells. but they
flowed month after month without any
perceptible decrease in their yield.
The new field could no longer be
ridiculed nor ignored, and in 1867
that remarkable exodus of operators
from all other oil-fields to Bradford
commenced.
In the first three months of 1877 the
population of Bradford increased from
800 to $500 actual inhabitants while
the transient population-operators
coming and going-was at least 10, 900.
In March, 1877. the monthly receipts
of the Bradford branch of the Erie
railway had grown to $4,000, then
more than fulfilling the prophecy of
Job Moses, made fourteen years before.
Over 800, 000, 900 came into the Brad
ford field in four years, and all other
fields were nearly deserted. And
Moses had his reward. The fortune
he had spent in demonstrating to the
incredulous and scoffing community
that there was oil in the Tdnungawant
valley and all the hills about it was re-
turned to him hundred fold. Last
week, satisfied with the results of his
twenty years labors in the region, he
sold the seven thousand acres of land
he still held, and all his other property
at or about Limestone, which place he
selected as his residence early in the
history of the field; and, as stated, will
take up his residence in New York.
The great oil-field to the development
of which his efforts directly led has
been rapidly declining for year and
more past. There is no more new ter
ritory to drill, and the old wells are
not averaging more than four barrels
. day, and most Of them are pumped
st that. Many of them have failed en-
tirely. and the production of the whole
district can not be more than $1,000
barrels day. But there are stored in
the tanks Of the oil regions over 34,-
600, 900 barrels Of petroleum surplus
production, of which probably eight
tenths came from the west, of the
northern field. Bradford, however,
will continue to be . prosperous city
even after the oil supply is entirely
exhausted, for industries and business
enterprises have been founded there
which do not depend on oil traffic and