Evening star., 1897-02-20

beat loads of oil lying in the Allegheny
river. causing loss estimated at 1850, 900.
Smaller wrecks Of this kind We're of fre-
quent occurrence. both on the creek and
river.
At High Tide.
The three years following were the high
tide years Of the business. On May 20,
1865, the Noble & Delamater well, on the
Farrel farm, began flowing at the rate of
"'ooo barrels day. and in q little more
than two months there was sold from it
S5o4.OD worth of Oil. The Caldwell well.
which was deemed to be interfering with
] Its production, was bought for s17JNO and
plugged. The sales of oil from the Noble &,
Delamater well during the next six months
brought the amount received for its pro-
auctlon to that date up to more than ST.
Oto,oU the whole regions were now tenn
ing with multiplied activities Everybody
either was rich or expecting to become
rich Immediately. The Oil creek valley for
practically its whole length, with Titusyille
at one extreme and Oil CITY at the other
was a concaVe forest of derricks where a
great army of fortune hunters had en-
camped. Every oil farm along the creek
was town, and made the whole valley
ven nigh continuous city. In point of rest
ana quletude there was no night Work
went on by night as well as by day and
the sound of the hammer and saw. the
creaKhs walking beam and pulley, and the
various other noises of that character
IMAGINATION to picture in what ways and
10 what limits the revelries and orgies of
the tougher elements contributed toward
making nignt as wakeful as the day. All
tEe ROADS. old and new, were simply a
series of mudholes. muck and ruts Cara
vans were wallowing through them all the
time, and the sides of the roads were strewn
with the wrecks of vehicles and all kinds of
overland freight, thrown off to tighten tha
loads.
Ebb Tide.
In the years 1854 and 1865 the climax
period was reached. 1t was in the latter
year that the famous -Pithole, which was
located few miles cast of the Oil creek
developments, sprang into existence. With
IN few months it acquired all the conven-
iences of an interior city, and had resi-
dent and transient population which
caused the business of its post Office to
rank third among Pennsylvania post offices
Philadelphia standing first and Pittsburr
second The city vanished almost as rapid
ly as it appeared. and the site of it has
long been serving the unrnetropolitan pur-
pcse of a sheep pasture 1t was in lSS,
also that the stock company craze in which
many millions Of dollars were drawn from
people in all walks of life. in every quarter
OF the country, and in other countries as
well, reached its greatest infia ton and
caused the speculative bubble to burst
All that now remains of what were form
cry lively oil towns are grass-grown exca-
NdtioHS. IKE tEcse Oh Old DattleneldS, and
| suggestive like them of the waste of ener-
giles in the accomplishment of the achieve
nents associated with them. An idea of
; the magnitude of the oil business of the
| whole country will be conveyed by the
statement that since its inception there has
| been received for exported petroleum and
| its products alone an aggregate amount
exceeding the present total money wealth
| OF the United States, in gold and silver as
| sfoWn In the latest summary Of the latter
| IN the treasury reports.
| Colonel Drake born at GreenyiIle
| Greene county. n. Y, March -, 1919, and
died at Bethlehem. Pa, November o. 1881.
! He acquired a comfortable fortune through
| his strike. but subsequently met with finan-
| cial misfortune. and became broken In
! health. eventually becoming an invalid.
| Old friends rendered him financial assist
\ apce in modest way. and in 1873 the
| Pennsylvania legislature granted him a
| pension of 1880 a year, which continued
until his death. and thereupon reverted to
his wife.