The Bon Homme County independent. [volume] (Tabor, S.D.) 1904-1913, 1906-03-22
THE LockHART WEALTH.
How $50. ooo.oco Was Made from Thre,
BarreIa Of Oil

TO" slousuSu,uNu was Mado fror iUTce
Barrels Of Oil.
The board OF tax assessors OF Allegheny
county In Pennsylvania purposes 60 clear
the mystery that has hitherto envcloped
the estate OF tho late Charles Lockhart of
Pittshurg. which n now said To amount
20 siSo.eo.oc and Co have grown 60 that
sizo from three barrels OF crude petroleum
bought In iSSs. says Plttsburg special dis
patch TO tho New York Herald.
Lockhart died on January %. iso5. leav.
inR n will I'm which he divided the bulk
OF his estate between two sons. J. II. Lock.
hart and John NJ. Lockhart. and two
daughters. Mrs. John n. Mccune and Airs.
Henry Lee Mason. To h.s other child.
Mrs. william 4. Flower. who married
young dentist against the wishes OF her
family. no left only the income OF 10000.
Tho will was drawn In such shape that u
was not necessary to divuige the value OF
tn, estate, which was announced to be be-
tween ,io.ooo.oo and tiS.cco.oco. lie had
been popularity rated at between 500 .ooc
and s500ooo.o0.
IL Ia said that Mrs. Flower viii reopen
her contest OF the will She had settled
her cas-. for $4,000 and q life interest In
81. ooo. 600 on the basis of the estate being
worth $40. coo. IL now develops that the
estate Ia worth nearer $500 .ooo. 900 than tto.'
ooo.oo. and her attorneys are preparing
TO reopen tho caso and demand q mors
liberal settlement
Secrecy has been the keynote OF the
Iockhart family. Charles Lockhart was
never communicative To the public. and
those who knew him respected his craving
for privacy. II was duo TO this inherited
desire for secrecy that Mrs. Flower was
able TO make better terms with her broth
ers and sisters than were provided BY her
fathers Will
Even the reasons on which her suit
would be based were not made public. but
Il was alleged that her father had left ut
least 500. 10000. Her share In view OF this
was r,dicuiousiy small The suit would
have resulted In making public the value
OF the estate. and TO avoid this tho other
four heirs sacrificed 10000 each. This.
with tho 5000 trust fund and tDo.op
cash left TO each OF tho chilren. presum-
ably TO lido them over until tho estate
could DO settled. gave Mrs. Flower n.1oo-
900. With this she was content To abandon
the contest. Now the board OF assessors
has declined 90 accept the heirs estimate
OF less than SO. CO., 900 and have returned
tho statement To them to be sworn 10. Tho
assessors believe the estate II worth sfso.-
10000.
Mr.. Lockhart was a man OF simple but
cultured tnstcs. While he had q remark
able talent for making money. ho was
devotee OF art IL In said he was ono OF
not At some time OF another been imposed
upon with n crude copy.
He was charitable, but was afraid or
appearing ostentatious. IL n told OF him
that when n committee OF women would
walt upon him TO secure n contribution &C
charity Mr.. Bockhart would perhaps put
mis- nnmc down for so Then the com.
mittee would seek Mrs. Lockhart 20 secure
her mite.
CHANGING over the list. Mrs Lockhart
would como tn the item. Charles Lock
hart. So There In some mistake here"
Mrs. Lockhart would say. MIR. Lockhart
meant $500 not go. / will correct IT,"
Then she would subscribe her mite"
probably $40. when the list was returned
to Mr.. I.ockhart for tho two subscriptions
he would make no protest. but. With o
smile. draw his check for $50.
Mr.. Lockharts great fortune grew from
the purchase OF three barrels OF crude
petroleum lie was born on n farm In
Scotland ir 1878. His parents were for tho
tlmo and place well 10 do. when seven
years old he went to live with his uncio.
q merchant at Garlieseown. n Scotch sea-
port In 1910 tho Lockharts emigratcd TO
the United States. Charles LockhRrt came
To Pittsburg. securing employment with
tho Wholesale grocery arm OF James Nc
Gully 4 Co. In iSS he became a member
OF the firm.
IL was while stin a clerk. In M, that
Lockhart made HIS venture In oil. This
was the purchase OF three barrels from
Isaac Hun. who was part owner In n salt
well In wrstmoreland county. from which
the McCully company obtained the salt IL
sold Dlrposing OF this oil Mt considerable
profit. I.ockhart purchased n controlling
interest In the salt we'll From that time
April. iS53-uutn his death he was an oil
producer.
After the discovery OF oil At OIL creek IN
1853 BY Colonel Drake. Jockhart sent a
representative TO investigate the field
Phillips. Frcw n Co. was organ
lied. I,ockhart being n member. In March,
1862 oil was struck. and sixty -four barrels
were shipped by water to Pittsburg. In
May. 1890. Mr.. Lockhart went TO Europe
with samples OF crude and refined petro-
leum and opened up the European market
for American oil.
In tho same year Lockhart. with others.
built the FIRST refinery In Pittsbury and
later. with William q. Warden. established
a commission house In Philadelphia and
built the Atlantic refinery there. Upon
tho organization OF the Standard OH com.
pany In 1874 all Mr.. Lockharts oil interests
were merged into II. and he became an
tctiye factor In that corporation.