The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-04-20
HAYSEED MILLI0NAIRES.
PENNsYLVANIA FARMERS WHO
WE'RE MADE RICH BY OIL.

Il
Sold Afterward for Almost Moth
ing-The Story Farm.
From the Pittsburg Dispatch.
IAN interesting book could be writ
ten" said an old-time oil man. about
the farmers who grew fabulously rich
in a few years from the product of their
farms lying on oil creek, if anybody
would take the trouble 20 collect the in
formation about what became Of them. 1t
is a curious fact that in the sixties most
of the money in the oil business was
made by men who began with nothing,
and the farmers came in for very large
share OF it, 1 myself could tell many
stories Of men, owning nothing but the
land, out of which they made a very
poor living, who in a very few years
after Col. Drake drilled the first oil well
in the United States were worth hun
dreds of thousands of dollars Most Of
them afterward died poor, and their farms
are now owned by persons not OF thelr
kith and kin.
''IThe only exception 1 recall to the rule
of the farms having passed entirely out
Of the possession of the families who
owned them at the time the oil excite
ment began is that Of the farm OF James
MacCray, a little distance back from Oh
creek, who made his living and that OF
his family from 1t, adding a little TO
his income from the farm by getting out
occasional RATS of lumber and floating
them down the creek to the Allegheny
river. Mr.. MacCray lived in log house,
and the other buildings on his place
were far from tie finest. He ana his
family probably saw very little ready
money, but within five years from the
time his farm was leased TO oil pro-
ducers he was worth at least %0O,OVO'
and was living in very fine a manson ans nm IN
dead a number Of years, and LETT con-
siderable wealth {. their sons, one OF
whom, i believe, stin owns the old place
"MacCrays farm was one of the nrst
leased, ana soon after the McElhaney farm
near it was leased by man named Funk
who made an immense fortune out Of II.
and he was soon worth at least $l,OJJOO0
He died a few years after he had amass-
ed this immense fortune, leaving IL to his
family. The owners of the farm also be-
came very rich, as in those days the roy
atty paid to the owner OF the land was Of
ten one-half in addition to bonus OF $1,000
lone of the most celebrated farms in the
Oil Greek region was that of George Wash
ington McClintock. Like others living in
that region, Mr.. McClintock had a good
farm with a few poor buildings on II, ana
was glad to make little extra money
floating RATS of logs TO the river. His
farm was leased by Brewer and Watson.
He only got one-fourth royalty, / believe,
but in a few years he was, worth at least
half a million. He moved to Meadville,
where, 1 think, some of his family are stin
"Af least 1000 persons made larger or
smaller fortnes out of the oil produced
from this farm. The Central Petroleum
Company was formed OF persons interest
ed in 1t, and is still in existence, though It
does not now control this property AL
though in a few years following brakes
discovery, and preceding the day of oil eX-
changes, the price OF OIL infatuated from
body who started in small way made
money, and the full history of this farm
would furnish some very noticeable IN
Of Of somewhat
is of an acre in which Mr.. McClintock
traded his interest, probably on the chance
of the wells on ii being busters for an old
horse The owner of the horse was man
named Killen, and the animal was not
worth more than $50, but few months af-
ter the transaction a well came in on Kill
lens acre which enabled him to sell out for
s., 600 i never heard what killen did with
his money. but the next day the man who
days later the second purchaser got $4,000
for his holding
another instance, somewhat of this
character, though the scene OF II was an
other farm, which came under my obser-
vation was furnished by young minister
He borrowed $1,000 to purchase a one-six-
which was being drilled and which
amounted to one-thirty- second of the pro-
duct of the well itself. 1t came in a 400
barrel well, and sixty days later the cler-
aryman sold out for $4,000 and took trip
to Europe. j think the trip was for his
health and If not the object must have
back and continued to preach the gospel
till the day of his death, and while he was
preaching he spent the money he had
made out of oil in doing good
John Stevenson was another Oil Greek
farmer, no richer than the others | have
mentioned when the leasing of territory
on OIL Creek began, but who became rich
er than most of the others. 1 think he
must have been worth at least million
when he removed to Ohio few years af-
ter the first well was put down on his
place. / never learned how he employed
his wealth.
1.-THE William Story farm was one out
of which perhaps as many fortunes were
made as any other. There were 400 acres
of it, and the Columbia OIL Company, com
posed mainly of Pittsburg parties, was
formed to operate it. The owner, like the
owners of other farms which a few years
before the oil period would not much more
than sustain the people living on them, Of
course became immensely rich. The Buch-
anans were another family whom the oil
in a few years made worth hundreds Of
other of those whose names recur to me
because OF the attention their suddenly
acquired riches attracted TO them I might
cases II would be unknd 70 do even that
because their wealth proved anything mn
a blessing to them and they would have
lived longer and died far happier n they
had been allowed to lead the laborloue ana
simple i0t 10 which they were born
''rhe fate so 70 speak OF the farms "a
H4H e.