Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1892-03-11
OIL DOM.

! the great oil excitement with rush
which is never equalled outside. of {
great oil center of production anc
speculation. The first oil exchange
in Butler county, ,Ewas organized here
in October, 1875, with S. H. Smith as
at one time Petrolia made the market
price of oil for the world. The
borough passed through ups and
downs usually the lot of oil towns.
quickly made fortunes and heavy
failures of individuals, and finally its
own prosperity began to wane as the
oil production fell off. Karns City,
Millerstown, Greece City, Modoc,
Buena Vista, Martinsburg and other
small towns sprung into life as if by
magic, but none ever rivaled Petrolia.
Greece City was probably the hardest
town in the oil regions during the hey
day of excitement 1t has almost
disappeared.
The oil producer, leaser, speculator
and property owner, all sought to fol-
low the belt in its course, as it was
now fully established that its direction
lay in southerIy course. Test wells
were put down in all directions and
oil derricks became more plentiful
than trees. The operator had entered
Donegal township, and oil was ruck
on the Stewart farm by Andy Stewart,
and started off with $50 barrels. An
other was soon struck on the Barnhart,
owned by the Lambing Brothers. 1t
produced 175 barrels, and gave conf
dence in the belt. The B. B. Campbell
well on the Forquer farm followed
with $50 barrels per day, which ex-
tended the limits of the territory.
Early in 1878 a big surprise party
dawned upon the community when
Mckinney Bros. and Galley & Co.
brought up a spouters on the Jacob
Hemphill farm, which produced
about 1,600 barrels the first day, and
maintained flow of 600 to 1000 bar
rels. Another gusher on the Divener
farm, struck March 1, 1874, drilled by
Plummer & Lee, produced over 200, 900
barrels before it quit. This was sold
to II. /. Taylor & Co. for S10O, ,0OC.
The first mystery well, put down for
speculative purposes, was put down on
the Squire Mckinley farm, two miles
south of Millerstown.
BY 1875 the country from Parker to
point several miles south of Millers-
town fairly bristled with derricks, and
torrent of wealth flowed into the
hands of the producers and landown-
ers. Oilmer at this time readily gave
s10O, 5000 and $3.50 per acre, with an
eighth of royalty of all productions, for
land, which, prior to the excitement,
was not worth more than $50 or $40 an
acre.
Millerstown had it's full share of ben
eft from the oil development. An oil
exchange was organized there for
the spectators, who, as is always the
case in great field Of production,
were numerous. Some idea of the
business transacted during the palmy
days of the exchange may be con-
ceived from the statement that the re-
ceipts Of the telegraph office during
that time were from $4,000 to S5, 900
per month, the Office ranking third
largest in the State.
The Bradford strike in Mexican
county, had caused wholesale depar-
ture of oil operators and the followers
of the field about this time, and Butler
county was almost deserted, and drill
ing for new wells had almost ceased.
There seemed to be a break in the
twenty-second degree belt, and dill
gent search had failed to locate the
direction in which it ran.
But the riches under Butler county's
soil could not be hidden forever, and
prospectors were soon leasing in vari-
GUS directions to locate the pool, which
oil men were satisfied existed some
where near Thorn creek. They were
not mistaken, as well drilled on the
| Wallace farm, east of the Bald
Ridge field. by Sam Armstrong, pro-
duced from one to four hundred bar
rels a day. This stimulated the lag
ging interest in this field and operators
| flocked to Thorn Creek. In 1885, the
Armstrong, No. 2, gushed forth 10000
barrels a day, having been put down
by Armstrong, Boyd and Semple.
the excitement following this strike
cannot be described. Farmers de-
manded exhoroitant prices for leases,
and operators willingly paid for the
privileges. Many good wells were
struck in this pool, but none ever came
up to the Armstrong, No. 2. Phillips
City and Mcbride City, sprung into
life as the work of drilling advanced
and wild-catting was carried on more
fearlessly toward the south, which re-
suited in the strike of the Thorn Greek
extension, which opened up at Golden
City, Bollard, Greenlee and Smith, made
the lucky strike in the Saxonburg field
of the "Grandmother'' well, which
gushed 1000 the first day.
Glade Run, on the same belt, was
well operated before the Saxonburg
, and produced many large wells, which
are flowing yet. The belt as it came
: through the county in a southwest
, erly direction, often led off il
loops, which were only found
, through the persistency of the
"wild cat' driller Hence th'
} famous Hundred Foot' field wa
} opened in 1889, which runs from Peters
: vile to Brush Creek, by way of Har
mony. This field is entirely off the Q
} degree belt, and the oil sand lies 30
feet higher than the above belt.
The field is the most active to-day
and Harmony is enjoying quite /;
boom through this medium. Owinl
to the low price of oil, operations ar,
not so active as they should be, but th,
opening of spring and an expected
rise in the price of oil, vii
cause thousands, who have desertet
: the fields for other parts. to retHrn
/ aud hundreds of darriclrs will he huil