The journal. (Caldwell, Ohio) 1934-1961, 1952-10-09

were lubricants for the wagon
wheels and primitive machinery
of the middle 1800's and kerosene
for the lamps of America as a
substitute for high priced whale
oil. Today, the number of petro-
leum products runs into the
thousands, and the uses for this
same petroleum, in one form or
another, are as uncountable as
the stars in the heavens.
The Early Days of Oil
The petroleum industry had its
beginnings near a little place
called Titusville in northwestern
Pennsylvania. Now a rustic viii
lage on the banks of Oil Creek,
perhaps 80 miles or SO from Pitts
burgh, it was only frontier
town of 125 souls in 1859-the
year of the great discovery. Here
in this remote spot, a retired rail-
road conductor from New Haven,
Conn.,, and a salt well driller
from Tarentum, Pa, made his
tory by punching a hole in the
ground. They proved that oil
could be found in abundance by
drilling for it.
publishers note: Often the re-
port that the first oil well was
drilled in Titusville, Pa, is re-
futed by old timers of Noble
county. 1t is authentically re-
ported that prior to the year 1859,
oil was found by drillers who
were attempting to locate new
beds of salt in the area now what
is known as Olive, east of
Caldwell, on State Route 78.
However, upon the flow of oil
to the surface, drilling was dis
continued for sale and likewise
for the newly discovered strange
greasy substance. Even to this
day, shallow wells will produce
small quantities of oil in the
area where the first oil was
struck in Noble county.)
Colonel Edwin l.. Drake and
his driller, "Uncle Billy" Smith
had been ridiculed, taunted and
harassed by the townspeople be-
fore their well came in. Today,
they are enshrined in history as
the pioneers Of oil; and big
museum containing their tools
and records, even brakes spec
tacles, clothes and rocking chair,
stands only a short distance from
the site of their strike. A replica
of their crude drilling rig and
shack also marks the historic
scene.
Oil Comes of Age
The modern oil industry, in
terms of capital investment, is
considered the fourth largest ir
the country. 1t is outranked only
by agriculture, the utilities ano
the railroads. It's gross invest
ment is estimated at 27.4 billion
dollars. 1t is owned by millions
of stockholders who have invest.
ed their savings and their profits
in its future.
Oil and gas or both are now
being produced in % of the Al
states. Texas is by far the big
gest producer. North Dakota i
the most recent to have CONNER
cial production, that coming enl.
a little more than a year ago.
The petroleum industry pro
duced more than two billion 45
million barrels of oil, and sever
trillion 967 billion cubic feet o
| gas in 1851. This was the larges
one-year output in history. De
spite this tremendous production
oil men drilled a record breaking
number of wells (44, ,545) and dis
covered enough new oil to in
crease the total of known re
serves of crude oil and natura
gas liquids to 80 billion 1913 mil
lion barrels - an all-time peak
These proved reserves are tn
supplies of oil whose location
and availability have been es
tablished beyond question.
Finding and producing oil !
anything but easy. The odd
against success are. high. For ex
ample, eight out of every min
wells drilled in new territory 9TH
industry calls them wildcats) ar
dry holes. And even if well
brought in, there's no guarante
that it'll be a profitable one. Sta
tistics show that only one out 0
every A wildcats, on the aver
age, makes enough money to pa
off its costs. The chances of find
ing a really big field, one with
potential of SO billion barrels 0
more are almost 1000 to one.
The cost of drilling a wildca
well runs around 100000, an
some have cost as much as on