The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1915-12-16
STRUCK OIL IN MONTANA
DriIIers at Work on B. F. kohal's
Ranch Near Lodge, Montana,
in the Great New Oil Field.

Ranch Near Lodge, Montana,
in the Great New Oil Field.
Many friends of B. F. Kohal, for
many years resident of Decatur
county, who moved some years ago
to Red Lodge, Montana, will be in
trested in the following article tell
ing of the striking of tremendous
oil gusher near his ranch, and a
drilling outfit is now at work drilling
on the kohal ranch, with flattering
prospects of striking oil, and We'll
not oe surprised to see B. F. entering
the millionaire class. The article
following is taken from the Carbon
County Journal, published at Red
Lodge, under date of Dec. Sth.
That Carbon county is the coming
oil center of the west is indicated in
the opening of a tremendous gusher
in the now famous Elk basin and in
the pronounced activities of the big
Oil companies of the country in get
ting development work started. The
gusher is located just short distnce
north of the state line and is the first
oil we'll in the state of Montana. The
stream of oil from the imprisoned
pool far below was hurled to height
OF nearly two hundred feet and was
capped with difficulty.
The last of this week will see an
other drilling rig at work, this one
only twelve miles from Red Lodge,
on the B. F. Kohal ranch on Dry
Creek. The Tanberg Oil Company,
said-to be composed largely of Mon
n 0f
patented farms in that locality and
is having the rig set up today. &c.
Tanberg, president of the company,
was in the city last Friday and talk.
ed hopefully and optimistically on tue
outlook to representative OF the
Journal.
Meanwhile the Hall Oil Company
has an oil rig at work on Jack creek
and officials of the company express
absolute confidence that success will
crown their efforts and reveal pool
even larger than the one already dis
covered in the Elk basin. While the
oil experts and representatives OF the
different companies are reticent in
discussing specific location and prob
able details of the oil development of
Carbon county they have no hesitan-
cy in proclaiming their firm belief
t.shsas t.shssas. this county has q WQaqsgful fr- =
.trre in its oil industry.
The discoveries and Developments
are alread attracting the attention
of the entire country and Carbon's
fame as the coming oil center Of the
west is spreading far and wide. Oil
experts and spectators, together
with drilling contractors and owners
of drilling rigs from all parts of the
United States are flocking to this
county and new discoveries and ac-
tivities are coming to light each day.
Much of the promising oil land, as
selected by geologists and experience
ed oil men, has already been secur-
ed through lease. There is little to
warrant a rush to the scene OF dis
covcries on the part of those eager
to share in the prosperity to follow,
as opportunity for getting in on the
ground floor is rather scarce. Loca-
tiOns on government land are being
made and the federal regulations re-
quire prompt and diligent effort to
make discovery in order to hold the
location. This precludes the individ-
ual or small company from handling
oil which may exist on public lands.
Regarding the Dry creek field, the
one nearest Red Lodge, Mr.. Tanberg
stated to the Journal that he hardly
expected a discovery of oil to be
achieved there before spring, though
confident that the rig being moved
in there this week would reach it. He
declined to state at what depth, ap-
proximately his company expected to
tap the oil sand, though admitting
that he expected more than 1900 feet
would have to be drilled. On the Jack
creek prospect the Hall company ex-
poets results in less depth than that
and are hoping for early results from
their operations there.
The outside world is giving it's at
tention to the Elk basin dome mostly,
where number of producing wells
have already been struck, but locally
the sentiment is that the Elk basin is
only one of many oil sections in this
and neighbOring counties. This is the
view of those whose experience in the
business has led them to take their
chances in other fields, notably the
Dry creek and Jack creek and the big
field to the west, part Of which lies
in Saltwater county.
Prospecting for oil is, however, a
game of chance, those who win, win
big, and fortunes are already being
made on the discoveries in eastern
Carbon county, the first producing
oil territory in Montana. Biologists
can determine with reasonable .accur-
acy and precision the "domes" where
oil should be found. The sloping
sides of these formations are imper-
vious to oil and have imprisoned it
for ages, water underneath holding
it. there. But during these ages the
oil from some such domes has escap-
ed through leaks or breaks, leaving
only water where the rich oil depos-
its once were Hence there can be
no certainty until the actual presence
of the deposits in commercial guam
titles has been esta ablished.
In the Elk basin district the gush-
er on the Carbon county side Of the