Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1901-09-19
EXPLORING FOR OIL
AN OLD BUSINESS EVEN IN
TEXAS.
IN PROGRESS THIRTY YEARS
Earlier Well Promised Riches but
the Product Soon Ran Out
Some Of the Great Cashiers
Which Now Occasion Such a
Craze.

| Exploration for oil in Texas has
been carried on in various parts of
the state for more than thirty years.
! Oil springs or seeps occur in many
places in the eastern half Of the
! state and also in Louisiana. Prior to
1898 the principal developments were
| in what is known as the Sour lake dis
| tr!Ct, in Jefferson county, and thence
eastwardly into Louisiana. Many
| test wells had been sunk with varying
results, in most cases some oil being
found in each well, but although
some of the wells started making
| several hundred barrels per day, they
soon subsidized into very small pro
duccrs, and oil was not produced on a
commercial scale until the COrsicaua
| field, in Navarro county, was develop
ed in 1898. This oil is of a different
! character from any other Texas oil
vet discovered, being parafne base
! oil, and while of heavier gravity
than Pennsylvania OIL is suitable for
refining, and contains practically the
| same products as PENNSYLVANIA oil.
At Beaumont, on January u, 1901
the now famous Lucas well struck OIL
at depth of 300 feet and started
flowing a large volume Of oil. The
oil spouted q hundred and fifty feet
into the air and its output was
variously estimated at from 10000 to
| 25, 900 barrels per day, but no accurate
measurements were taken. The well
flowed for nearly two weeks before II
, could be controlled, and the country
In the vicinity was flooded with oil.
Subsequently thanks were complct-
ed and an accurate measurement OF
| the flow was obtained. The we'll
filed a thirty-five thousand barrel
tank in little less than twelve hours,
or at the rate Of 10000 barrels per
day. The well seems to have little
or no gas, and it is an interesting
question, not yet answered, as to
where the well gets it's pressure %
force the oil to such a height above
the ground The country Is perfectly
fiat for many miles in all directions
around the well.
The oil in this, and all other Texas
wells, occurs in the CretaCeOus lorna
ton everything the Austin limestone.
This limestone crops out on Line
running approximately from north to
south through Sherman, Dallas, Waco.
Temple and Austin City, and dips
from this line towards the east. On
this limestone has been deposited the
crctaccous formation in increasing
| thickness as we go eastward, and OF
varying strata. At Galveston this de
post has a thickness of 5000 feet.
floating in this Cretaceous deposit
there occur strata of sand rock OF III.
definite and irregular extent, and at
VARYING depths. These sand strata
carry the oil Except the oil found
near Corsicana, in Navarro county,
Texas oil is not what is commercially
known as petroleum, namely, it is not
a paratinC oil.
The oil is of a dark greenish brown
color. almost black. and varies IN
gravity from about IA degrees to %
degrees. That from the Lucas well
has a gravity of 224 degrees. 1t con
tains / G4-100 per cent, sulphur N
solution. or combined with the oil.
On Gistilation it yields about 80 per
cent, of heavy distillate strongly inn
pregnate with sulphur and Withonl
the visCosity required to make a good
lubricant. The 10 per cent remain
ing in the still Is a good quality o.
pitch or asphalt Of high melting point
and could probably be substituted fot
the ordinary asphalt of commerce,
The attention called to Texas on
will undoubtedly lead to wide eX
ploration for other deposits of OF
which are Likely to exist at Other
points in tho state, and it is possible
that more oil may be found of the
same class as the Corsicana oil, an(
If found in large quantity would atfec
the Penn ylvania product, 1t is yet
however n matter of mere speculation
as to whether or not suCn deposits
will be found.
So far as any process now know
is concerned the Beaumont oil VIII
not produce any Illuminating oil o.
good quality The oil has no lubrtcat
ing properties, and does not contain
any paranine wax The only use tt
which it can be applied, with presen
knowledge, is a fuel For this pur
pose, however, it is valuable. and /
the promise of the wells recent,
drilled shall be realized it will lea'
to an enormous business, possibly
even larger than the present pc
trcleum business, and may have a de
, C'@ri influence on the coal trade ant
On tho coal carrying railroads.
SO far there have been nine produc
ing wells completed and six DIR,
: holes There are about seventy rig
1 and drilling wells. Nothing deftnit
Is known as to the capacity of thes
: nine wells. but they each made a larg
> showing when opened and the owner
r claim that each one is as large, o