Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1885-01-08
Mlistellaueuns &eading.
SHOOTING AN OIL WELL.
GETTING 4 COLUMN OF OIL UNDER CON
TROL.

SHOOTING AN OIL WELL.
GETTING 4 COLUMN OF OIL UNDER con-
TROL
Right between these two wonderful toun-
tains was drilling the Armstrong, Boyd d
Semple well, and it was expected to pour
out torrents of oil, but on October % it pass
ed through the sand rock without having
made flow. The hole stood full of salt
water, with few feet of oil on top, but the
owners were discouraged, hoping at best to
develop the we'll into oavery small producer.
The patient feldmenSa and scouts were thun-
derstruck and could Hardly believe the evil
dence of their senses, But in all candor they
were compelled to report to their principals
that the we'll was failure. The owners,
as a last hope, determined to explode a
large torpedo in the well, and accordingly
on Monday, the 9th, lowered fifty quarts
of nitro-glycerine in it. The weight was
dropped shortly after ten o'clock in the
morning, and the crowd of spectators
watched listlessly, merely to see what effect
the tremendous explosion would have, eX-
pecting little or no Improvement in the
well.
First came the sound of report like a
pistol shot, the only detonation of fearful
explosion 1000 feet below the surface.
Then column of salt water shot up half as
high as the eighty foot derrick and subsid-
ed. flooding the derrick. Then came a
torrent of water, burnt glycerine, petrole-
um, sand and pebbles and rushed in
black column to the crown pulley on top
of the derrick, where it broke and spread
like a parachute, coming down again IN
a shower. Gradually the black column
changed color, until it was like a golden
rod, connecting the floor of the derrick with
the top, and still the mighty torrent rushed
on. Hidden for a moment by the cloud OF
gas that came after the first burst and rose
like steam from boiler explosion the
column appeared again, rushing upward
with irresistible force until dashed to spray
on the derrick top. The shower of petrole-
um fell thick and fast, over an area ten rods
in diameter, and flowed down the hillside,
completely filling culvert across the neigh
boring highway, and pouring down gully
toward Thorn creek, where the flood spread
and covered the flat grassy bank, before
finding it's way into the creek. Attempts
were made to estimate the flow by obstruct-
ing this torrent, but the dams were over
flowed before they were half constructed,
and two boards, a foot wide, placed two
feet apart, SO the stream passed between
them, were overtioWed on both sides. Tel
'egrams fle% to all the oil exchanges esti-
mating the flow at 100, 200, 800 and finally
400 barrels per hour, and the market which
had advanced on reports that the we'll was
failure nearly ten cents, dropped ten cents
in few hours, crushing fortunes and fair
hopes in its fall
No grander sight than this fountain Of pc
troleum was ever witnessed in this region.
Like the great geyser Of the Yellowstone
basin, it shot the fluid column high into the
air, but the fallingspray unlike the geyser's
crystal drops, were globes of shimmering
gold as the light shone through the amber
liquid. And there was something terrible
in this exhibition Of natures powers. The
gas that left the surging column like steam,
spread through the surrounding wood. SO
that the fires at dozens of drilling wells had
to be put out. People fled from their rude
dwellings down near the creek, as there was
be gnited and result in a terrible contlagra-
ton. The fires under the boilers at the Uni
ted Pipe Line pumping station, a mile down
Thorn creek, had to be put out on account OF
the gas, as the torrent poured out unre-
strained for over four hours.
A pressure of over 5000 pounds was re-
uuired to get the cap down on the casing
| head when the flood was turned into the
| tanks and one workman was overcome by
the hydro-carbon gas, SO that he lay all night
unconscious. When the stream was turned
into the gas tank the eight two;inch pipes
to the large tanks were instantly filled to
their utmost capacity, and from two three
inch gas escapes in the top of the gas tank
streams were thrown far above the top OF
the derrick. For days afterward the spot
surrounding the well, when seen through
the trees, looked as though the sun was
frightening it, SO bright was the amber oil
that clung to the branches Of the trees, the
derrick, and lay thick on the ground.