Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1891-08-09
THIS BEATS RUSSIA.
A Lake Of Oil Struck Near North Balh-
rDrs, Ohio.
DEPTH BORED BEING 1908 FEET.
The Gsyssr Of OlsayinOus Fluid is Claimed TO De
the Largest in The World, Its Capacity
Being gstimabd at Seventy Thousand
Barrels Of Oil q Day.

ST. MARYs, o., August s.-Ohio has
the biggest oil we'll in the United States
If not in the world, and if permitted to
flow its full capacity it would more tnan
fill two of the monster $4,000 barrel
tanks every tventy-four hours. IhlS
great oil geyser is located in Hancock
county. lust four miles south OF the
town of North Baltimore. To be more
explicit, 1t is located on the southeast
corner of the Hugh McMurray farm, In
Allen township, and is the property OF
the Ohio Oil Company. The well mas
inst been drilled in, and when at depth
Of thirty-ive feet in the sand strong
gas pocket was struck, and the well
showed for a gas producer OF about
1850, 900 cubic feet capacity
Gas was not what was wanted,
however, and the drill was
sent s feet deeper, which made the
total depth in the sand 43 feet, where
oil was found. The total depth OF the
we'll Is 1,20s feet. When the pool was
struck the oil started flowing, and
connection was made through pinch
line from the casing head to 6OO-oar-
rel tank, which was filled with good,
clean oil in precisely ninety minutes
The company then learned that tney
had drilled into wonderful lake or OIL
and it was also discovered that ordinary
tankage facilities were far from sufficient
and work was at once begun on another
6OO-barrel tank. At the same time sew
eral dinkey pumps were started, and
pipe lines were laid, while connections
were being made to the main line. On
the afternoon of the same day 1t was
decided to take the tools from
the hole, and thousands oil
people, having heard OF the
gusher, flocked in from all direc-
tlons, to see the famous geyer opened
up. At about o'clock the en-
CINE was started and the tools were
gradually being brought to the surface.
The drillers were being drenched with
oil, which flowed all over the derrick.
When the tools were within few hun
dred feet of the surface the rope COM
menced to slack, and the drillers, after
reversing their engine, made for place
of safety, as the tools wPre Ih5ssure of
the oil. 1t was thought at the time
that the rope had broken and the tools
left in the hole, but the drill was found
setting besides the casing in the rig.
AS soon as the tools were out solid col
umn Of oil belched forth from the cas-
ing head, rising far above the derrick,
where il spread in all directions. There
were two pinch lines connected on the
casing.
1t made as beautiful a sight as any
one wished to see, and 1t thrilled the
hearts OF the oil men, who witnessed
the sight, with delight, to know that
they had looked upon what was proba-
bly, the largest we'll ever completed on
the globe. An effort was made to shut
the well in, and eight men worked for
nearly two hours until the succeeded in
getting the we'll under control. After
wards 1t was turned into six-hundred
barrel tank through a two-inch line,
running the tank over with rolly oil in
sixty-three minutes. The well, at the
rate 1t flowed through the casing for
the space of time it was opened, would
in twenty-four hours produce a good
seventy thousand barrels Of rolly oil,
making nearly double the size of any
well ever completed. not barring the
wonderful Russian wells.
The Ohio oil field now leads all In the
shsp Of phenomenal geyser of oil
equal to volcano. Some several months
ago a cable was sent out from Russia,
stating that we'll with a capacity of
400, 900 barrels day had been opened
up in the Baku field of Russia. There
was a mistake in the report, as it was
claimed by eye witnesses to be good for
0,000 barrels.