The San Francisco call., 1895-07-28

an oil exchange to properly handle the
large and growing output of petroleum has
called attention to the remarkable increase
in the production of the local oil wells, and
it is now coming into prominence as
solution of the problem of supplying a
cheap fuel, the lack Of which only has pre-
vented Los Angeles from becoming man
ufacturing city.
For many wears it has been known that
oil existed here. In places the ground was
saturated with it, and as the volatile parts
evaporated the residue mixing with the
earth formed 'breer." This breer was
for some time dug up by the eSecond-street
Railroad Company and used for fuel, and
many of the poorer families used it for a
like purpose. The ground was examined
from time TO time by experts who had had
large experience in Eastern oil fields, and
all united in saying it was simply "seep-
age"; that no true oil field existed, and
that any expenditure for prospecting
would be throwing money away.
In December, 1892, three men, Messrs.
Altman, Garfield and Doheny, purchased
two lots near the corner of West State and
Patton streets and started to dig two shafts.
and were dug with pick and shovel, the
earth being hauled up by buckets. Their
reason for literally digging an oil well was
that they expected to find oil, if any, so
heavy that it could not be pumped, and
would have to be elevated by buckets.
The shafts were about $50 feet apart, and
when one was down 100 and the other $50
feet much lighter grade of oil was struck
than the owners had anticipated, but the
quantity was not large and their methods
of handling it we're SO primitive it was not
a paying proposition. In March or April,
1893, their "grub stake was exhausted,
and they started out to interest capital to
continue sinking the shafts or secure better
machinery and bore new wells.
After trying in vain for some time they
succeeded in persuading ]. F. Turner to
furnish small amount of capital, and the
boring of a seven-inch hole was begun in
primitive way between the original two.
Before the new well was down twenty feet
Turner and his partners quarreled, result
ing in the retiring of Doheny, Garfield and
Altman, and the purchase for the sum of
5000 of their interest by Turner.
Turner then bought an hydraulic water
we'll boring machine, and after sinking
down 225 feet succeeded in bringing up
three barrels of oil. So much encouraged
was he by this magnificent result that he
bored another well adjoining 1T to depth
of 480 feet, securing four barrels all told OF
the black liquid.
His old partners, in the meantime, had
not been Idle, and were sinking two wells
a short distance from his last venture.
When they reached depth of 300 feet the
wells yielded TWO barrels of oil each daily.
Bayer & Lost, two merchants who had
property in the vicinity, had in the mean
time caught the fever and were engaged in
sinking two wells in Second-street Park,
which, at depth of 300 feet, also attained
the magnificent output Of two barrels each
per day.
Turner had been watching the results,
and, despairing OF accomplishing much
with the poor machinery then in use, i'm
ported a st. Louis Keystone well-boring
rig and started in in earnest, sinking six
holes to a depth of 500 to 600 feet, which
yielded on an average five barrels of oil to
each well daily. His former associates fol-
lowed him up with like apparatus and
obtained the same results
1t was not until September, 1893, that
standard oil-boring outfit was set up,
Turner purchasing one and Doheny follow
ing him up with another. This enabled
these enterprising men to sink shaft 900
to 1000 feet, when flow was struck Weld
ing fifteen to twenty barrels daily. It had
been an open question prior to using the
standard boring outfit whether the oil field
was true one or simply seepage, but on
reaching the increased depth Oil sand was
discovered, which proved conclusiyely oil
existed in large quantities. Not long after
this fact became known derricks were
going up on every side and property rose
In value. Some wells have produced as
much as $50 barrels day, the general