The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-07-19
QUICK FORTUNE AT SOUR LAKE
TALES or LUCKY MEN IN THE
NEW TENAS OIL FIELD.
The Excitement Greater Than mt Beaumont
In the Early Days-MOst or the Money
Made In Land Speculation Men
Made Rich I'm n Few Weeks or Months.

! ago this place had a population OF about
| thirty people. II has to day population
| of more than 1000.
The only buildings here when the great
! oil boom was started we're the hotel which
provided accommodation for people who
came to take the waters OF the medicinal
springs nearby and few struggling shacks
occupied by worlmen. There are at this
time scores of brick and frame business
buildings in course Of erection, and thou
sands Of land boomers, oil spectators,
fakirs of almost every description, sub
stantia business men and investors are
camped in tents.
The excitement to be witnessed here
daily is far beyond that which characterized
the early development of the Beaumont
oil field Sour Lake Is only twenty-one
miles from Beaumont, and practically
all the Beaumont oil producers and land
spectators are represented here. In ad
di:ion thousands of men have come from
all over the country.
The climax has not been reached and it Is
predicted that by January Beaumont will
be far outstripped and that Sour Lake
will have a population Of $4,000 This ia
probably an extravagant estimate. The
chances are that while Sour Lake will be
great producing district. Beaumont will
continue to be the principal oiIdistributing
centre.
Oil men say that the Sour Lake oil field
il the most extensive in the world The
proved oil territory Is already several
times larger than the Spindle Top oil field
nj pnu, ~ nd 10 Iain
day. 1t is the theory of some oil men that
this oil field has a direct connection with
that of Spindle Top and that continuous
field, extending for more than thirty miles
and running northeast and southwest,
will he developed in the course Of few
years.
1t is the land owners and the spectators
who are making money fastest at Sour
Lake at this time The demand for oil
land is so great that prices advance each
day. When the boom st arted land could be
bought for S. and $40 an acre. The same
land is how selling for from $40 900 to $50, 900
an acre. Land not situated in the proved
oil territory sells readily for 81 900 an acre.
town site company laid off tract OF
ground for a great city here few weeks
ago and began selling lots for 500 each.
Some purchasers of lots at that price have
since sold them for as much as $1,000 each.
Some large fortunes have been made
quickly. Men who came here a few weeks
ago with only a few hundred dollars have
realized profits amounting to many thou
sands Of dollars by buying and selling land
One Of these fortunate investors was James
Mason Of Atlanta, Ga.
He was on his way to California on a
vacation trip. He heard so much talk
on the train between New Orleans and
Beaumont about the new Sour Lake oil
field that he decided to stop over for day
That was about six weeks ago. He be-
came so interested the first day he spent
here that for $500 he purchased twenty
acres Of land, situated some distance from
what was then the proved oil field
The oil field was rapidly widened until it
reached his tract of land. He sold his
twenty acres several days ago to the repre-
sentatives of an eastern syndicate for
100000 cash. The land is considered to
be worth several times that amount to-day
Mr. Mason has returned to Atlanta and after
he has made good interest bearing invest
ments of his money he will journey to Cali
forna in his own private car
X. F.. Brooks, formerly Judge of the
District Court at Austin, cleared up $500, 900
net profit in one day about two weeks ago.
He bought tract of oil land in the morning
and sold ii few hours later at an advance
of 5000 in price over what he had paid
for it.
George A. Hill, formerly a railroad ex-
cursion agent employed by the Mexican
Central Railroad went through the oil
boom at Beaumont. He came to Sour
Lake with the advance guard of boomers.
He had few thousand dollars in money
and lots OF experience, He has used both
of these assets to advantage and is now
reputed to be worth fully $500 900, all made
within the past three months.
John +. Smith, chief clerk in tho State
Comptroler's department at Austin, ac-
quired three years ago for about $500 a
tract of land embracing eighty acres, stu
ated nine miles from Sour Lake in what
is known as the Saratoga oil field He
has already sold seven acres of the land
for $4,000 in cash and has been offered
sl2O 900 for the remainder.
Even the blueprint men, the fellows who
came here from nobody knows where and
were without cent upon their arrival,
have made money. These men sell blue
print maps of the oil field to prospective
investors.
One of them is j. l.. Dixon, who a little
more than four weeks ago was a homeless
man travelling about the country in search
of a location where he might stand a chance
of improving the condition of himself and
family He and his family were travelling
bv wagon and had reached Beaumont.
They made camp there expecting to
remain few days while Dixon sought
work. While looking for a job he heard
something about the excitement at Sour
Lake and thinking that a good place for
securing employment he trudged the en-
tire distance on foot, leaving his destitute
family behind TO await his return.
When he reached here he had only 81 .85
in his pocket His clothes were in tatters.
He wns employed To do odd jobs around
the town for few days.
He then made an arrangement with the
owner Of a certain tract of land whereby
he was to receive all over a certain stipu-
lat. d price for which I've could ut Il the land.
ThrOuI h his persistent hIIstling he sold
fixed by the owner and obtain, d as his
profit ont OF the transaction the title to a
tract Of five acr, of proved oil land and the
additional Zee Of $4,000 in cash The oil
land il easily worth $4,000.
From poverty to affluence in four weeks
was mountaineering ACCOMPLISHMENTS
When the deal was finally made and Dixon
had his affairs in good shape he struck
ont for Beaumont. The first thing lie did
when h. arrived there was TO purchase
, Gle thing ard an abundance of .ocd sup
! pill for his wife and children
| Til So are only a few of the many instances
! which are relate d Of fortunes made here
quickly. The syndicate of which former
! Gc vernon j. 5. Hogg il n member has
| add q several millions of dollars To it's