The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1907-08-31
Montgomery Well in Highland
Park Is Open.
Gas BOils Up Through the Salt
Water.
CASING is SENT FOR.
Troublesome Water Will Be
Disposed of.
DiscOverer Certain That 1t Will
Be in Paying Quantities.

Topeka now has natural gas of its
own. H. s Montgomery's quest which
has extended over a period of three
years has been rewarded by at least
partial success. The only thing to be
demonstrated is the extent and amount
of the supply.
The Topeka gas we'll is located a
quarter of a mile from the Highland
Park car line on the George Flanders
place directly south of where the line
turns east toward Vinewood. 1t is
less than three miles from the state
house. southeast. as the crow flies. The
depth of the we'll is now 54T feet 1t
will be drilled only a few feet deeper.
Work was commenced on the pres
ent we'll on June 10 after James Ken
nedy. an expert locator. had selected
The spot where the rigging was to be
put up. His instructions were follow
ed to the letter. The work of drilling
was in charge of Andrew Moore, as
sisted by E. w. Moore. There, were
delays without number caused by
breaking the rigging and the weather,
but the drillers kept at the work per-
sistently. At about 200 feet a vein OF
salt water was encountered ana TINS
has interfered more or less with the
work since that time though no addi-
tional water was found after the drill
had passed the 800 foot mark. Th1s
will make the work of casing out the
water less difficult than if the water
was found at a lower depth
Asphalt Is Found
At a depth of AIS feet after drilling
a long time in soap stone the drlll
struck a new substance that looked
somewhat like coal but was more brit
tie There was a vein of six feet of this
substance which when analysed proved /
to be asphalt of an excellent quality
This find might have satisfied some
people but Mr.. Montgomery was look
ing for gas and he ordered the work
to be continued. The drill continued
for about fifty feet in bed of soap
stone such as had been found above
the asphaltum and at the depth OF
about $40 feet sand stone was encoun-
tered and soon after the driHers no. |
ticed Il strong odor of gas rising from
the drill hole. This was more notice. |
able Just after the drill had been taken
from the well which indicated that the
body of gas was held down by the |
large volume of salt water with which |
the well is filled below depth of 800 |
feet AS the drilling progressed; the |
odor of gas became stronger and it has |
continued to increase in volume until
the present.
The Gas Is There
When the drillers were certain that
gas had been found Mr.. Montgomery
was called in and he at once ordered the
well cased to KEEP out the water the
Il
will be here in a few days. Meanwhile
the work will be carried on until the
sandstone in which the drill Is now
working is punctured- This sandstone
is exactly like that in the Indian Terri
tory oil fields in which oil was found
in abundant quantities. While there is
a trace of oil in the Montgomery well,
the drillers are pinning their falth TO
gas.
A visit to the we'll this morning proved
all that was claimed. A cap had been
placed over the opening and the odor OF
the gas was plainly dlscermoie as II
escaped through the small opening with
a Kissing noise like that made by gas
let in a house. The cap was removed
and q piece of burning hemp was drop
ped into the well and instantly the sides
were lighted with a thin blue flame for
a hundred feet down the we'll The
volume OF gas which comes from the
we'll is saturated with water as 1t is
compelled to pass through at least 100
feet before it can escape For this rea-
son il does not burn readily and the wa
ter also prevents the drillers from know
Ing how large a volume of gas has been
found. AS person stood at the opening
This morning he could distinctly hear the
water boiling as If gas were coming up
through it.
This Is Third Attempt
This is the third we'll drilled under
Mr.. Montgomery's direction in this
lmne date neighborhood but neither
Of the other wells was sunk to a
depth of 500 feet. He is naturally !
very much elat.d over the find. He
said today: II feel that 1 have been
at least partially rewarded for my be-
lief that there is, gas in the vicinity of
Topeka. People have laughed and
ieered at me and called me fool but
I have demonstrated that there is gas
here.
I'VE will not be able to tell how
large the volume until the casing
arrives and is put in place as the large
volume of water makes 1T impossible
TO even guess on the extent of the !
body of gas. We hope to sink the a
we'll deep enough to get through the t
sand stone in which the drill is now c
working and then after we have cased I
out the water we will know just what +
we have got. But we have proved f
conclusively that there is gas here"
The Topeka Commercial club Of Il
Tered bonus of $4,000 to any one q
who would find gas near Topeka. If L
Mr.. Montgomery's we'll is successful I
he will turn this money over to James
Kennedy, the aged man who located
the we'll
Forty strikers Return to Work