The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-12-26
Total ..........................1O, 1856 3.34S

The above figures show that 1856 wells
have been completed in the Indiana oil and
gas fields since the drill was first started
in the State for the purpose of finding gas
for fuel. Since then the State has become
very prominent as an oil-producing State,
and is growing more In value each year.
The wells completed since gas was first
struck at an estimated cost of $1,000 each,
| represent an outlay OF $l6,9O5, 600, to
say nothing of the vast amount of wealth
put into the pipeline business and the cree
| ton of the mammoth storage tanks. Take
| it all in all at least $50,000,000 has been in
vested in the development of oil alone in
| Indiana. This brings large revenue to the
| State as well as makes employment for
| thousands of men at good wages. There are
| at least three thousand men employed as
| drilers, tool dressers, oil well bumpers, ETC.,
| to say nothing of the higher salaried posi-
| lions, such as farm bosses, gaugers tank
! strappers, roustabouts, contractors and
managers. The farmer has also received a
great benefit from the finding of the crude
| product
During the present year there have been
| no important strikes like the one at Peru
| last year, instead the operations have been
mostly confined to the edges of the old field.
| For the past few years the now active por-
| ton of Jackson township, Wells county, was
| considered bad owing to the large amount OF
| salt water that was encountered in the wells,
| but the present year the field has had quite
a boom and wonderful good wells have been
| completed. One of the busiest fields during
| Blackboard county, where Ludwig & McDon-
aid opened up the field by completing some
good wells on the j. p. A. Leonard farm.
| The most prosperous point in the field at
| present is Van Buren, township, Grant cOun-
| ty, where good wells are being completed,
and but very few dry holes recorded. 1t is
now thought that the field will spread to the
west as far as Marion, or even farther. IN
Huntington county there are good prospects
for several good pools. but the drill has not
as yet been pushed much. Miami county
| has about disappeared from the oil map.
Wabash county nas some faith as yet and
so has Delaware county. One of the pros
pective counties is Marion, and while great
many wells have been drilled in the vicinity
| Of Broad Ripple, the field for the past year
has not been extended. Jay county has an
abundance of undrilled territory, as has
Adams county. During the year two VEN
lures were made near New Haven, in Allen
county, and near the Ohio line but nothing
! of a sensational character was struck. The
last venture in Cass county did
Many ' are ire '''''1 Of the opinion n O that
the Indiana oil field has seen it's day.
but this is only talk from a source that is
not authentic. for the field. or rather the
heart of the field has not been tapped by
the drill, There is no reason why gushers
will not as well be found here as in any
other field, and more SO, for this State has
the greatest gas field earth. and with
it is certainly it's twin product, crude oil, as
they both go together. These gushers will
evidently he found after the gas pressure
gets to low ebb. In Ohio oil has been
found as deep as two hundred feet in the
Trenton formation The following tables
give the work of the entire Indiana field for
the year of 1898: