The Goodland republic. [volume] (Goodland, Kan.) 1891-1907, 1902-08-08
OIL AT GRANITE, OKLAHOMA.
Valuable Discoveries Made in Greer COun-
ty, on the Rock Island Road
Big Prospects in View.
From dispatch to Topeka CAPITAL.


county, Oklahoma, on the Rock Island
railway. When asked what were the
prospects Mr.. Stephenson said that when
fully developed Greer county would
prove to be the largest oil producing field
in the world, not excepting Beaumont
He said that at Granite, Greer county, a
reasonable show Of oil had been struck
at one hundred and seven feet, which
would pump twenty barrels per day.
This oil Is very heavy and suitable for
fabrication. Mr.. Stephenson said that
he used it on his buggy just as any other
axle oil is used and that it was a perfect
lubricant. 1t is well known that salt
and sulphur are found in every oil field.
This belt is literally charged with these
substances, and as gas escaping from the
ground is one Of the surest signs, then
this country will produce gushers which
will make the spOuters at Beaumont pale
into insignifcance. This statement is
based on a well known cause.-the gas
pressure. 1t is the natural pressure Of
the gas at Beaumont that makes the
wells "gush." The puddles of water on
Spindle Top were constantly bubbling
with escaping gas at Sour Lake the
water is bubbling and In one place aCtu-
ally bOils with escaping gas) until the
water is raised fully One-half inch above
the surface. Mr.. Stephenson says that
he has studied the gas indications very
closely and as be has spent daysat Sour
Lake and Beaumont watching and ex-
perimentiDg with the gas he feels com
petent to judge and says that he Is actu-
ally afraid to say what the consequences
will be when the first well is drilled in
the gas fields that he has witnessed IN
Greer county. The escaping gas
as it comes through the water
forces it up from twenty to one hundred
times as high as it does at either Sour
Lake or Beaumont, and that if the pres
sure is any criterion the casing will be
shot clear out of the hole and stuck in
the moon.
Prof. 7. A. Edison Of Chicago, an oil
expert, was employed by the Granite
Lubricating and Fuel company, to test
the oil. The following is his report. Il
lave made a careful inspection of your
oil feeds and find the most encouraging
conditions to exist. There is one of the
most startling evidences Of the richest
deposits of oil to be found in the United
States. Nature has prominently thrown
up its massive guide boards upon which
I have been able to determine these facts.
At the southern terminus of the natural
oil basin in which your fields are located
a range Of mountains is thrown up, ex-
posing on its walls the stains of oil car
ried up in the oil stratum at the time of
this upheavaL There I found abundant
deposits Of dried oil in the cOnglOmerate
and shale, also large deposits of partly
dried oil, ranging in consistency from
that Of well dried asphalt to that Of mo
lasses. There are many other land
marks that nature has left, that when
thoroughly interpreted, give startling
revelation Of facts, enabling one to deter
mine step by step down through the for
nations everything the basin Of oil Here
and there 1 found wells that were sunk
for water and abandoned Oh account Of
containing so much oil that neither man
nor beast could drink the water. In
three different places I found gas escap-
ing from the ground, winch, when tested
was Of the best quality for either fuel or
light. The springs and water courses all
show oil in their margins and surfaces.
Several test wells have been sunk and
oil found in each Of them. This in ad
dition to the indisputable surface indica-
tons noted above are convincing indica-
tions Of a vas: supply Of oil. The chem
zeal analysis Of the oil found demon
strates that it is the most valuable of
any Of the crude oils on the market 1t
is not the cheap quality Of oil generally
found, but a heavy lubricating oil, al
most pure grease, containing only eight
tenths OF one per cent foreign matter
and that is sulphur. Two gallons of this
oil is worth a barrel of the Southern
Texas oils.
A Rock Island official says, " The indi-
cations for finding immense quantities of
oil and gas in Greer county, Oklahoma
are certainly very fiattering. 1t Is an
actual fact that from one well at Granite,
Okla, only 80 feet deep, there can be
pumped from FIVE to twenty barrels OF
oil per day. The oil is Of a very fine
quality, and suitable for fuel and lubri-
eating purposes, as it comes from the
ground. At the present time about five
companies, composed Of some very strong
and reliable men are at work in this
field If the predictions Of Mr.. Steph-
eusou are true the strike of oil and Dsz
at Granite viii prove a most valuable
One-valuable especially for the reason
/ that the Granite oil field is at least SOC
miles nearer to the commercial centers
Of the Missouri river than the Beau
mont and other Texas oil fields The
mere item Of transportation viii produce
marvellous results in the consumption