The Weekly Tallahasseean., 1901-12-06
DRILLING FOR OF
Captain Kelley is InterVieV&
on the Subject. |
CARRABELLE WILL BOOe
Machinery ia Now En- Route, al
Work Will Soon Begin.

Carrabelle is bound to come to tie
front in time. Her natural advantages
are such as to insure her success. Nf
she had few more enterprising elf
zens like Captain D. H. Kelley hkr
growth would be more marvetOks
than any conceptions in the Arabian
Nights entertainments. 1,
Captain Kelley went to Cara belle n
December, 1877, when there was nPt
even a house there, for the purpose ef
locating a town. He was backed ~
wealthy New Workers in the enterprise
. and it is mainly through his aIfOlas
that Carrabelle has attained the iIk
portant position it now holds in TIE
shipping world. Mr.. Kelley was III Is
pelled to select Carrabelle as the locS-
ton for a city, on account of it's nals-
raj harbor, which the United Sta1Ss
Gulf Coast Survey considered TIE
second best on the Gulf Of Mexico, Peg
sacola being the best.
The town now has a population ~
1900, with two splendid schools aTSl
three churches for the white peo0lS
not to mention the accommodation fC
the colOred brother. Captain Kelley
was in Tallahassee Monday, and
conversation with the TallahaSseeaN
4 remarked:
1T is a fact that the colored peopE
built the first church, the first Masonic
hall and the first Odd Fell OWs' hall il
Carrabelle."
In further conversation in regard II
the rivalry existing between Apalachf
cola and Carrabelle, Capt. Kelley saidg
Eyes, Apalachicola is very Jealous
Carrabelle and in the past has secureS
every advantage in the way of gov
ernment appropriations. She is eVeS
now asking for $500,O0O, together witk
an annual maintenance fund of $50, ,00f
This amount would only give hel
eighteen feet over a shifting bar, thai
is liable to be filed up at any time.
"Carrabelle only asks for $4,000
with no maintenance fund This sur
will insure us twenty-three feet Of wa
ter at ordinary tide Through the ae'
ton of the current, the channel at Car:
Rbelle is gradually deepening of it
bEn accord at the rate Of one iNch
ysRr. In 1858 the Government Smrvel
found Is feet and six inches Of water!
In 1882 the survey found that it hal
deepened to IL feet and six incheS
without a dollar having been spent or
it.
"Carrabelle is naturally the port, be-
cause all vessels loading from eithei
that point or Apalachicoa must anchoi
in our harbor. Still she is only sub
port, and Apalachicola gets credit fol
h,s1,, 4&01 - be-
From the rivalry existing between
the two places, the conversation driftet
to oil. Last winter when Capt. Kelley
was in Washington he read about the
discovery of oil in Texas, and the Ques'
ton naturally presented itself: ''If Oi
was struck in Beaumont, why can't wr
strike it in Carrabelle?"
He at once began to investigate, and
found all the indications favorable
The geological formation of limestone
Is only so feet from the surface. Al
the old ferry the distance is just twelve
feet, the dip running in sOuthwesterly
direction.
Last August Capt. Kelley opened 'uI
correspondence with parties in New
York in regard to drilling for oil. They
recommended Mr. M. G. Brown, al
expert oil we'll driller, who has haC
twenty-seven years experience in tht
oil fields, and who has already drilled
oil wells in thirty-four States. MT
Brown came down to investigate. HI
found the surface indications eXtremel!
favorable, as much so as they are any
where.
Mr.Kelley at once became very enthu
ri ;yaRa NJ
Brown & Davis, expert oil well drill
erS, to drill for oil in Carrabelle. Tn
contract calls for a we'll 1000 fee
deep, if necessary, and if after reaching
this depth, the conditions warrant, tn
well will be sunk even lower. The es
umated cost is $1,000.
Mr.. Brown and family arrived il
Tallahassee Saturday afternoon AM
went down to Carrabelle Sunday morn
ing to meet Mr. Kelley. Lumber 1s Of
me ground now, and work has been be
gun on the derrick, which will be z
ieet high. Mr.. Davis, the other mem
Der of the firm, is expected at Cara
Oelle in few days with the machinery
Snd as soon as it can be placed in posi-
Qon the drilling will start A force
men from the Pennsylvania oil field
VIII be in charge.
IN discussing the matter, Capta1
Kelley said:
II we strike oil, and we have ever
,nsason in the world to feel encouraged
Illorida will witness such boom a
s1e ~, has never seen before. 1t is a
vlQ saying that all things come to hiI
mo waits, and have been waitin
Ssnently for years. One great tror
We with the people that are not SUI
SSessiul is that they are too ready
~ nom one thing to another. The
~ - not possess sufficient staying quail
lss. I have known men to stick
sNvI@ething two or three years and the
LOW it up in disgust when, perhap
srOtner sue year would have brought thel
,sScess. s.. have gone into this bus
ss and intend to stick until succei
va failure is fully assured.
Il we succeed, it will cause an II