Montana oil and mining journal. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1931-1953, 1941-02-15
HEALD TELLS

conclusion that the known fields
/ Immediately stamped as absurd and
untenable. However, both opera
| tors and biologists began to De
lieve that Oklahoma possibilities
had been pretty wen demonstrated.
U. s. g. s. Had Visions
"One well-known geologist pro-
claimed that as most Of the Okla
hOma fields were undoubtedly dis
covered. the future function OF
biologists would be to render them
such assistance as possible. One
government report did appear which
announced that there were posi-
bilities below the mississippi
lime,' in the Devonian, in the
Silurian and In the Ordovician. but
Il was a feeble voice crying in the
wilderness and seemingly aroused
only passing interest among the
biologists and no response whatever
from the operators.
The Wilcox Sands
To-day that thin bulletin Of the
Geological Survey is out Of print
and forgotten. but the deep sands
It talked of are we'll known to all
Oklahoma oil men as the. first and
second Wilcox, the Turkey Noun
tain. the Hominy. and the deep
sands of the Healdton and Hewett
fields. In Kansas these deep sands
were early found in the Eldorado
field, but they were not generally
recognized as the equivalent Of the
Wilcox of Oklahoma until after
the fine work of Aurin. Clark and
TRACER was published by the Am
erican Association of Petroleum Ge-
o1ogists, while their possible value
in eastern Kansas was not demon
strated until when the Red Bank
opened the first HOminy Sand pool
near independence.
This slow demonstration that OIL
der and even older, deeper and ev-
er deeper, beds in Oklahoma carry
oil has its parallel in Texas. in
Louisiana. in California, and
small scale in the fields
of the East. What would be the
production from the Gulf Coast to-
day If there were no wells more
than $500 feet deep? California
with wells 1000. 5000 and even
5000 or more feet deep has made |
the old time deep wells" seem
like veritable post holes
(This article was written be-
fore the drilling of 1900 to /
Is, 00O-foot wells in California /
Head reasoned at that time that /
oil might be found at 1000 feet. /
saying that 80 far as the tenn /
perature and pressure are concern
ed oil could exist at a depth of /
10000 feet. although both these /
forces would tend to make the oil .
migrate surfaceward through any
fissure or other avenue of escape
that might present itself. and for
this reason If for no other it is I'M
reasonable to expect as much oil
in great depth as will be found
nearer the surface" This theory
seems to tie in with the general
belief here in Montana that oil
found in the Madison (Mississip-
pian) lime here in Montana has
collected in porous streaks in the
lime as a result of vertical migra-
ton of oil from lower horizons).
Even so, California was slow to
learn the possibilities. he said.
1.-THE old Midway field in California
has produced for years. Sand after
sand was discovered and developed
Below the deepest, however, was a
body OF brown shale that NO ONE
TO HAVE THE NERVE
TO DRILL THROUGH AND AP-
PATIENTLY NO ONE WAS INTER
ENOUGH TO STUDY 1T
WHERE 1T CROPS OUT IN THE
HILLS TO THE WEST AND
SOUTH TO LEARN WHETHER OR /
NOT OIL MIGHT NOT BE EITHER
IN OR BELOW IT 1t remained for S
he Obispo Oil company in Aug
lst 1925. to do what stronger and d
more cautious ones had hesitated
10 attempt. They drilled through I
he brown shale and their well q
poured out clean oil at the rate OF b
1900 barrels a day. This daring Y
title company on its 40 acre lease
made the outstanding discovery of \
he year in the San Joaquin Valley Il
ields of California"
He Was Partially Right. n
While discouraging deep drill 2
ng in many parts of the country. Ct
lie said: "Only the southern states,
western Oklahoma and Kansas, L
ARTS Of the Rocky Mountain states, d
nd California can reasonably be 7
onsidered as fair hunting grounds
or the man who Is willing to drill y
900 feet or more, and even in is
hose states the facts now avail 1
BILE strongly indicate, If they do W
OF absolutely prove, that the deep
st possible producing sands will
OF be more than 1000 feet below
he surface where they cap anti
ines, although on the TANKS OF
lie anticlines these sands may lie
greater depths
High Gravity OH
Head pointed out that deeper
rilling developed higher gravity
IIfnrr,In n..If