The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1891-08-27
WELLS ONE MILE DEEP.
| The Government to Take the Earth's
Temperature Below 4 900 Feet.

'GIcSI III III hCit ID
being drilled on Boggs Run, near this
city The we'll is now over 1000 feet
deep. and it is the intention. if possible.
to drill it TO the depth of an even mile
IS. go feet. The United States Geo
logical Survey will contribute IS. 900 to
the fund. 1t is the purpose of the gov
eminent to take the earth's tempera-
ture at these low levels and obtain
other scientific data. Satisfactory
tests of this character have never here
tofore been made in this country.
owing to the water or oil that has been
encountered in the few other deep
wells that have been drilled.
If the Wheeling well is driven to the
depth of mile it will he the deepest
we'll in the world. At present the
deepest well in this country is one
drilled for gas in Pittsburg some
years ago by George Westinghouse.
Jr. 1t was sunk to the depth of 1850
feet, when work had to be abandoned
on account of the drilling cable break
ing of its own weight. The weight of
the cable now in use in the Wheeling
well is 1000 pounds. Powerful ma
chincry must. OF course, be employed
in drilling these deep wells. and the
york is slow and expensive.
In the event of any tool being lost
in the hole the job of fishing it out be-
comes scientific achievement. Tools
are made expressly for fishing pur-
poses, and they are many and ingen-
ious In the oil-felds there are men
who make a business of fishing lost
tools out of wells.
Jonathan Watson of Titusville, Pa,
drilled one of the deepest wells ever
drilled in the oil country. He sunk it
to the depth OF 3. 553 feet at a cost of
$25. 900. Mr.. Watson is rich man
and il spiritualist. and the well was
drilled under the guidance OF the
spirits 1t was drilled for oil. but was
not successful venture. The well is
located on the flats below Titusville,
not far from the Drake well, the
pioneer oil we'll in America. Oil in
the Drake well was found at the depth
of but IS feet. In August, 1889, MIR.
Watson completed Il well in this
locality which was also spirit we'll.
having been drilled at that particular
spot by the advice of the spirits of two
late friends whom he had known in
life The well produced 80 barrels a
day at the start, but it was soon ex-
hausted. aud probably did not pay for
the drilling.
There are wells in Greene County,
Pennsylvania. producing oil from a
depth of about one-half mile. These
are the deepest oil-producing wells i'll
| the country. The cost of drilling n
well to this depth approMmates SIS
| 600.
The Boston School of Technology
was some time ago asked to give an
| opinion regarding the possible depth
| the drill would have TO penetrate be-
fore it could get through the sandstone
! in a deep well being drilled at Rock
| vile, Conn. The well was being drill
! ed for water by n silk manufacturing
| firm. 1t had at that time reached IA
depth of 3. 440 feet. All this distance
! had been drilled through sandstone
with the exception of 200 feet. The
Boston scientists did not venture an
opinion. Prof. Emerson of Amherst
| College declared that the drill was the
only scientist that could tell anything
about it. Nothing but Il practical
test would determine anything certain
rs to where the sandstone would end.
St. Louis has Il well which is 3, 147
feet deep. For Il time it belched
forth seventy-tive gallons of water IA
minute. The deepest well in the
world at the present time is one at
| Potsdam, Germany. which was drilled
to a depth of 5.27O feet, or ten feet
short of one mile. Europe has some
remarkable holes in the ground. Tlkre
is one twenty miles from Berlin which
is l6 feet in diameter to the depth of
| 2S0 feet, and from that to the depth of
1914 feet it is Is inches in diameter.
| The Paris sugar refinery drilled well
2,9O0 feet deep which is 10 inches in
diameter. At Butte aux Cables is a
well which is 6 l-2 feet in diameter
and 1900 feet deep. Another deep
hole in the ground 1-2 feet in
diameter was drilled at La Capelle.
France. The drilling tools used in
this we'll weighed over four tons.
In the early days of the oil industry
in Pennsylvania it was thought that
untold wealth might be obtained if n
shaft was dug down to the oil-bearing
rock. Four such shafts were started.
| one al Iateuluui, Ia. on the Ale
gheny River above Pittsburg; two mt
Tidioutc, Pa, also on the Allegheny;
and one at Petroleum Center. on Oil
Creek. The shafts were about 10x12
feet and were all abandoned al nearly
the same depth-2S0 feet. One of the
Tidioute shafts was wrecked by an ex-
| plosion and work was never resumed
/ on it afterwards. The foreman, stand
ing on plank across the top of the
hole dropped down lighted taper
previous to sending the men down 10
work. A terrific explosion of the gas
in the shaft lifted him up into the air
and he fell back into the hole and was
killed. His mangled body was tished
ont of the bottom Of the shaft and, as
natural gas explosions had up to that
time. been very rare in the oil country,
the tragedy created much excitement.
Public opinion was so strong against
taking any further risks that the con-
tractor was forced to give up the work.
A complete geological record of the
Wheeling well is being kept and a
copy will be sent to the Worlds Fair.
Copies will be sent to the United States
Geological Survey at Washington, the
State Capital ut Charleston. the Uni
versity at Morgantown. and one will
| ha mod bv IN Nhaalinrr rb, N, Ia,